Creedog VanDrey Productions: CoKE: Chapter 3: Introductions

Rating: K+
3300 words

The tall, sinewy beings finished speaking in the foreign language. They continued to stare down at the six visitors with suspicion.

“Clark,” Chloe stated under her breath, nudging him, “maybe you oughta introduce us before they decide we’re hostile invaders.” At this, she shoved him forward. The pair looked down at him with emotionless expressions.

Clark cleared his throat, “I am Clark Kent. We are the Champions of Kal-El. Jor-El has sent us to rescue the Kenaki people.”

Sensing Clark’s lack of confidence, the suave Lex moved to stand by him. “We are skilled warriors, but we mean you no harm. If you understand us, perhaps you might be able to direct us to where we might find the Kenaki. If you could also provide us with food and shelter, we would be greatly indebted.”

The two creatures looked to one another, there mouths curling into smiles, almost smirks. Suddenly, the ground beneath the champions shook and they found themselves being raised on a metal platform, much like the circular one that staged the beings. The platform was square except for the front, which curved in, fitting like a puzzle piece with the circular platform.

One of the beings spoke, in a very neutral voice with slightly off intonation and rhythm, “Forgive us, Champions of Kal-El. Since it was very likely that you had to face the Waya warriors in the desert, we knew you to be powerful adversaries, and we could not immediately assume you were not malevolent. We are now convinced. However, we are very amused by your quest. We are the Kenaki people, and at this moment we are facing no perils. The Champions of Kal-El the First liberated us long ago. However, if you are the true Champions of Kal-El the Great, sent by his most benevolent father, Jor-El, then we welcome you with great merriment.”

The six took a few cautious steps forward.

“However,” the other being stated, speaking a tad faster than his companion, “it is traditional that you each introduce yourself and the Kawatche hero you have been chosen to represent, so that we may sense the virtues within you.”

Clark, which a glance from Lex, stepped forward, “My name is Clark Kent. I represent Naman. ”

The creatures smiled and quickly bowed their heads. “You must be of unsurpassed courage, Clarkent,” one of them stated.

Lex stood beside Clark, “On my planet, I am called Lex Luthor. I represent Sageeth.”

The creatures smiled even wider. “I already see great strength in you, Lek-Sluthore,” the creature on the left commented.

Chloe bounced to Clark’s other side, “I’m Chloe Sullivan. I was chosen to represent Loral.”

The two creatures exchanged impressed looks. “How well you must represent Her Majesty Loral to have such courage that you have accompanied your husband on this journey.”

Chloe’s confidence faded, but not her poker face. “Say what?”

One of the creatures began a jubilant explanation, “No being could truly represent Naman without a loyal and true consort acting as the embodiment of Loral. However, it is very rare that that consort does not select a warrior to go in her place.”

The right being spoke up, “Your presence here has inspired us. Tomorrow, we shall hold a coronation ceremony, in honor of your courage and devotion to your husband.” His companion nodded in agreement.

Clark was about to protest, but Chloe quickly laced her arm through Clark’s, placing her other hand on his bicep and squeezing it hard. Clark felt no pain, but got the message nonetheless. She whispered under her breath, activated his super-hearing, “We’re trying to prove ourselves. Let’s work out the technicalities later.”

Luckily, Pete joined Chloe by Clark’s right side, before the welcoming committee’s suspicion was raised by the pause. “I am Pete Ross, and Jor-El chose me to represent Dayak.”

The creatures bowed their heads again. “Truly you serve your master well, Peetros. Welcome.”

Lois strolled in between Clark and Chloe, breaking up their embrace. Holding her hands out, she stated, “I am Lois Lane. I think that that Jarnelle guy told me I’m… Myora?”

The two creatures were almost laughing in mirth. “Welcome, Lowzlane. Truly your race has become more enlightened. You are the first female representative of Myora that we have heard of. We can only imagine what wisdom you must share with your fellow champions to be awarded such a prestigious title as Myora’s envoy.”

“Oh, that’s the way it goes.” She winked, and the creatures smiled again.

Lana approached slowly, standing close to Lex. With all the voice she could muster, she stated, “I’m Lana Lang… and I represent Rayen.”

The left creature stated dramatically, “Ah, yes, Kal-El is not blind. What a beautiful and exotic visage you are. Well worthy of Rayen’s title.”

His companion proclaimed, “I have no doubt that you are the true Champions. Your very virtues spring forth from your souls like the finest perfumes. Please enter with us.”

* * *

The castle from the outside looked fairly impressive, but by no means did it seem gargantuan: maybe a hundred meters square around the base, and probably three stories tall. However, if anything, the Kenaki people were crafty architects. The three stories seen from the outside were the top three. Nineteen floors had been built beneath the visible castle. Some of them were as high as ten to fifteen meters; some of them hundreds of meters wide and long.

The champions discovered this during a tour of the facilities, which was directed by the two hosts that greeted them, whose names they learned to be Proditor and Beipanzhe. The mode of travel was a large elevator-like contraption with more than enough room to hold its eight passengers. The panel on the wall which directed the movement of the elevator was not a series of buttons but rather a cross-section diagram of the entire palace. To visit a certain floor of the castle, Proditor merely had to touch a certain section of the diagram, and the elevator moved accordingly. During the tour, Chloe made the mistake of calling the sub-ground floors “subterranean.” She was corrected: since “terra” meant “earth”, the correct term was “subdagulean.”

The first two floors below the surface housed several lavish meeting centers. Floor Sub-1 housed an enormous ballroom that was currently being prepared for the coronation ceremony to occur the next day. The floors below the entertainment levels housed bedrooms, the size of the rooms decreasing with each subsequent level. Below these were floors serving a multitude of purposes: arts auditoriums, battling arenas, artisan workshops, kitchens, storage warehouses, and libraries. The bottommost floors were under construction, being worked on tirelessly by a different race of aliens from the Kenaki. These aliens were much smaller, three to four feet in height, with scaly skin in a variety of earth tones, slightly beaky mouths, and wing-like arms. Chloe and Lois quickly expressed worries about slave labor, but their doubts were quickly rebuked. The workers they witnessed belonged to a sub-sentient race which had no comprehension of freedom, though enough intelligence for skilled labor, and were well-treated for their efforts.

Lana noticed one of the workers falling over in pain, clutching his neck. Proditor explained that the servants wore collars around their necks. Their necks are very sensitive, and when working, their bodies swell, which can be painful. He further stated that even though the Kenaki would allow them to remove them, they refused, because of cultural tradition. “It’s almost like a sort of corporeal mortification, I’m afraid.”

“That’s sick.” Lois commented.

Proditor replied calmly. “I noticed that you have stuck decorative metal pins through the lobes of your ears, Miss Lowzlane.”

The Kenaki guides were very astute and quickly noted that the champions were tiring, so they directed the elevator to rise toward the housing floors.

Lex, Lana, and Beipanzhe were dropped off on Floor Sub-4, the lower of two nearly identical luxury dormitory levels. The rest were escorted to second, Floor Sub-3, by Proditor.

Lois was the first to be shown to her room. As Proditor opened the large double doors, the four champions’ mouths dropped. The room was far more magnificent than any of them had ever laid eyes on. Purple curtains hung against the fifteen-foot high walls; lush, soft-as-rabbit-fur carpets covered the floor; dozens of sticks of incense filled the room with sweet-smelling smoke. And the crowning feature of the room was the bed, which was twice as large as a king-sized and covered in a sheer canopy. Lois gained a wide smile that didn’t diminish even as the others were escorted away, especially as she approached what seemed to be a wagon-sized covered tray of food.

Pete was shown to a similarly-sized room. It was Spartan compared to the décor of Lois’s room. The bed was large but simple, and the walls were covered in weaponry of all kinds. Pete became particularly distracted by a rather large broadsword, and he barely noticed Chloe’s good-night as Proditor escorted her and Clark away.

Proditor led Chloe and Clark to another room which was larger than Lois’s or Pete’s room and decorated for what seemed to be a king and a queen. The color scheme was a mix of red and blues. Large pieces of furniture filled the room: a towering wardrobe, a comfy-looking couch, and a large, double-king bed with a mattress so thick that the entire bed was lowered two feet into the floor. It soon became apparently to Clark and Chloe that this room for two was obviously designated for the both of them. Proditor bowed and wished them well.

“I can take the couch,” Clark immediately offered as their host closed the door behind him. In truth, it would have been no inconvenience as the couch could easily dwarf his frame and was apparently cushioned as much as the bed.

“Clark, that bed takes up two time zones. I see plenty of pillows if you’re so prudish that you want to build a wall between us.”

“Chloe…”

“I’m not kidding, Clark. This bed is too big—not to mention wondrously comfy-looking—for you to sleep on that dinky little sofa.” As Clark nodded in defeat, her stomach grumbled, and he suggested they see what was waiting for them underneath the giant covered trays. It turned out, gratefully, to be food… and a lot of it. Proditor had told them that the chefs had prepared a number of Earth cuisines, though he also mentioned that it’d been a while since they’d prepared Earth food, and the chefs were a little unsure of quantity and method of preparation.

Clark and Chloe immediately threw out the uncooked steaks, not wanting to know where the chefs managed to find cows on a desert planet. Most of the fruit was edible and delicious, with the exception of the overripe bananas. To Chloe’s sorrow, none of the included metal thermoses contained coffee, but one did include decently chilled if slightly flat Coca-Cola or its extraterrestrial equivalent. She tried not to bat an eye as Clark apparently drank what had to be half a gallon of chilled milk. After disposing of a basketball-sized blob of half-cooked bread dough, Chloe located a decently cooked chicken leg underneath. At least it tasted like chicken. It was the largest chicken leg Chloe had ever come by. It took a little bit off prodding, but Chloe did convince Clark to open the wine bottle that was included with his meal. It took two swigs for Chloe to remember that Clark’s alien physiology broke down alcohol immediately, so she thought it best to recork the bottle. The chefs obviously didn’t understand that vegetables could be cooked, so Clark and Chloe ended up gnawing on the only edible ones: raw carrots. The chefs did however know how to bake a delectable chocolate cake. Chloe stole a few bites of Clark’s oversized piece, knowing full well that given his alien super-senses, he was letting her. In return she let him have a few gulps of her milk.

After the hodge-podge meal, Chloe’s eye began to droop. She instinctively looked at the watch that had been absent from her wrist for the last twelve hours, instead finding the silver bracelet. Sliding off the bed, she went to open the wardrobe.

“Chloe?” Clark stated to inquire about her actions.

“I’m about to fall over, Clark. I’d like to go to bed. And I’d rather not sleep in this.” After tugging with quite some force on the door’s knob, she turned to Clark, “Mind opening this? It doesn’t seem to be designed for us mere mortals.”

Clark slid off the bed and grabbed the other handle and easily pulled it open, without super-strength. “They’re fit-together doors. I noticed it with my X-ray vision.”

Peering into the now open wardrobe, she prodded, “And you didn’t happen to notice that there were any clothes in the wardrobe?” She moved to open the outside doors. Looking left and right down the hallways, she called, “Uh, anybody there?”

Within seconds, Proditor appeared from around the corner. “Yes, madam?”

“Wow, that was quick. Uh, the… mister and I would like to go to sleep. May we have something to wear to bed?”

Proditor’s face immediately showed great distress. “My most sincere apologies. I assumed you’d be sleeping without garments.” He rushed in, closed the wardrobe door, pressed some invisible button in the wardrobe’s woodwork, and reopened the doors to reveal a wide variety of hanging garments.

“Madam, how much covering will you require? Will from the waist down be sufficient?”

As Clark’s face turned a fiery red, Chloe quickly responded, “No, definitely more or less what’s being covered right now.”

Proditor nodded and pulled out a periwinkle two-piece set consisting of some small shorts and a tank top. The material appeared sheer, but Chloe could tell it was opaque. Wishing to end the ordeal as quickly as possible—the more comfortable Clark and Chloe appeared around each other, the better—she consented to the outfit.

“And, you, sir? Bifurcated or unbifurcated?” Clark’s only response was a confused stare. Proditor nodded. “I apologize. For your lower garment, would you prefer something like your wearing now or something with double-legging?”

“Double legging is good.”

Proditor handed Clark a pair of pants and a sleeveless shirt made of a similar blue fabric. “Will that be all?”

“Yes,” Clark and Chloe replied in unison. Proditor bowed and exited with an air of satisfaction.

“Clark,” Chloe started, toying with her braids, “would you mind seeing if you can get these bands out of my hair?”

Clark nodded as he approached Chloe. With one hand, he tightly gripped the braid above the band, and with the other, flicked it. The band glided across the room and Clark’s super-strength prevented the action from pulling on her hair. As he repeated the process with the other band, Chloe tried to divert her eyes in a direction so not to look at Clark’s chest, but found her field of vision fairly filled by his broad torso. As Chloe shook out her hair, Clark changed in the blink of an eye. Chloe looked up just in time for Clark to finish pulling down the fitting muscle shirt-like garment, only to watch the seams pop and the shirt flutter to the ground in tatters. Chloe pulled her eyes away from the defined edges of Clark’s chest and mechanically walked toward the bed to begin the process of building a pillow wall down the center of the bed, trying to keep her breath even.

After surveying her creation, she turned to face Clark. “So, you think you can look away while I’m indecent?” Chloe asked rhetorically, not looking away from the pillow wall.

Clark dutifully faced the other direction. Clearing her throat, Chloe asked, “So, just checking, but one of your alien powers isn’t eyes in the back of your head, right?”

“Well, I suppose between my telescopic vision and my X-ray vision, I might be able to look through the curve of space and see around.”

Chloe held the tank top to her chest. “Clark…” she mumbled.

“I’m kidding, Chloe. I am definitely seeing nothing but this remarkably interesting red couch.”

“Okay, I’m PG-rated again.” Clark turned around, relieved. He then caught sight of Chloe in shorts that only covered about two inches of her thighs and a stringy tank top that, though showing only minor cleavage and maybe an inch of midriff, clung to her figure like a glove. Seeing Clark’s expression, she added, “Okay, maybe PG-13.” A queasy look appeared on Clark’s face and he spun around holding his hands to his fact. “Clark, are you okay?”

Clark spun around again, holding his hands behind his back. “I’m fine. That had nothing to do with you.” Chloe’s internal lie detector went off, which set off her journalistic perceptiveness, which pick up on something that lifted her spirits immensely. Clark’s palms were glowing red hot. She unsuccessfully hid a proud smile and readjusted her top, finding there was a direct relation between how much midriff the top covered and how much chest.

“C’mon, Kent, I’m about to collapse.” She hopped into her side of the bed. Because of the wall, she’d divided up the numerous sheets and blankets, suspecting that her friend might be a sheet hog.

As Chloe drifted off to sleep, several sounds filled her ears. The first was the crackle of Clark’s still-scalding hands ruining his pillow. The second was Clark take a deep breath to blow off his hands. The third was the sound of him grabbing another pillow from the make-shift barrier.

* * *

The walls were smooth and white, but decorated by dozens of Native American cave wall drawings. The central one was of a blue two-headed creature; one of the heads was boxy but human; the other resembled a snake or a dragon. To each side of the figure was the figure of a woman: on the left, a circle-headed woman wearing a necklace; to the right, a square-headed woman wearing a bracelet. Below the two-headed figure was a warrior figure with armor. As Lex looked back and forth along the extensive wall, he admired the images, all of them reminiscent of the Kawatche cave drawings in Smallville; some of them he even recognized. Some of the groups of pictures told stories, but Lex found many of them undecipherable. Also, the familiar alien language hovered near certain images. Try as he might to stay awake, Lex felt exhausted, so he made his way to the large, silver four-poster bed in the center of his room and slid under the already taken-down covers, bare-chested. As he made himself comfortable on the right side of the bed, the thick blankets soon covered any indication he was in bed.

A/N: You know, this always happens when I try to write a story that is only supposed to have a little Chlarkiness. More than I expect shows up, and it’s often more blush-worthy than I knew I was capable of.

^_^ - By the way, that was quite a racy Chloe scene! Give me a second to fan myself off!

Chapter 4: Society