The Gods Must Be Crazy
Written by Amazonia V
Chapter 19
The aftermath of the terrorist attack on Metropolis was a blur of images and moments.
The toll was 9403 dead.
The President had declared three days of national mourning. They'd used the Metropolitan High School gymnasium as the morgue. Supergirl was on continuous duty ensuring a non-stop supply of ice with her super breath as was Green Lantern who used his power ring to help.
All of the heroes were helping to identify the battered bodies of citizens.
All of the heroes except two.
Wonder Woman and Superman were conspicuous by their absence.
The Daily Planet had closed its offices for the funeral of Lois Lane, Reporter Extraordinaire and Jimmy Olsen, Special Photographer.
All of the Planet's staffers attended the funeral. Metropolitans and others whose lives had been touched by Lois Lane were either present for the funeral or tuned into the television network to follow the ceremony closely.
Super-heroes, some in their everyday ordinary identities and some in full uniform took time off from their duties to pay a mark of respect and honor for the wife of the greatest super-hero of them all. The Department of Meta-human Affairs deputed Ms. Diana Prince to lead operations at the funeral. With so many metas attending reporter Lois Lane's funeral, DOMA wasn't taking any chances.
A number of the super-heroes gathered there would move on to be present at the memorial service for The Batman. A very select gathering had paid their last respects to Bruce Wayne, playboy billionaire who had died in a plane crash early last week. The few who had known both Bruce and Batman in life, were bound together by his death. All had remarked at the visible grief on Wonder Woman and Superman's faces.
Now, they were gathered for once more to mourn yet another loved one – Lois Lane. It was a somber occasion for all of them.
There had been a moment of confusion when the White House had announced that President Luthor would attend the event. This had resulted in unprecedented security and changes in the ceremony to follow the protocol required. Lois' funeral was combined with a hastily planned memorial service for all of the dead citizens. Even now, the ceremony couldn't start until the President took his place.
Clark kept his emotions under control. Luthor was responsible for the differences that had cropped up between Lois and himself. He wanted to punch Luthor, break his jaw, but he simply clenched his fists and kept his head bowed.
Clark's thoughts went back to the last time that he had seen Lois. Happy and sated with their love-making, she had fallen asleep. Though he had been disconcerted at the time, Clark now cherished the incident as one of his happier memories. And while Clark held Luthor responsible for the distance that had sprung up between Lois and himself, creating a crack in their marriage, he knew that some of the issues ran deeper than that. But for now, Luthor was as good a target to blame as any.
Wonder Woman stood stock still. Her Amazon training prevented her from showing her grief. Two-fold grief. Grief at Bruce's needless death, grief for Clark's loss.
She watched Clark control his emotions. Earlier, she had comforted him on his double loss, had tried to help abate the guilt he felt at letting down both Lois and Bruce. Clark, being Clark, had held himself responsible for both the deaths. Diana was wiser. Lois's death was by chance, she simply was in the wrong place at the wrong time. Bruce's death, however, was the work of the Olympians and Diana intended to storm the halls of Olympus till Zeus heard her. Now, however, she focused all her energies, all her strength into maintaining the semblance of balance that she knew Clark needed.
President Luthor was speaking now, his words searing deep into the soul, "We remember vividly the events that took place here. This tragedy has rekindled memories of great souls of all time who gave their lives so that men might live and grow. Such events remain as wounds in the human consciousness, reminding us of battles yet to be fought and tasks still to be accomplished.
We do not mourn for those who are departed from us – our colleagues, our citizens and members of security forces. Rather we rejoice that we had the privilege of having had them with us, to inspire us by their radiant personalities. I feel that while they are not present physically with us, they are with us in spirit.
Today we are gathered not to offer grief, but to salute men and women who continue to inspire us even now."
Clark Kent stared straight ahead. His ears registered the words, his keen reporter's mind appreciated the fine speech that he was hearing but his heart rebelled. He should have prevented Lois from dying. Should have been in Metropolis to save her. Should have shielded her from the terrorist attack.
Somewhere, deep inside of him, Clark castigated himself for failing both Bruce and Lois. Bruce had counted on him, depended on him, and he'd left Bruce suddenly to fight on alone.
What was the point of having all these super-powers if you couldn't use them to save the ones you loved?