Clark finally found the red kryptonite ring, lifting it from the small box. He paused, hand trembling as he prepared to slide it onto his finger.
"Don't do that, Clark!" Chloe's voice broke the tense silence. She reached out, a desperate gesture to stop him, tears shimmering in her eyes.
She had always liked Clark. Even knowing his heart belonged to Lana, her feelings remained quietly unspoken. Seeing him now, driven to this extreme, a surge of helpless sadness overwhelmed her.
"Once you put that on, you won't be yourself anymore!" Chloe's voice shook.
Clark turned away, suppressing his emotions, his gaze falling to the floor. "I'm sorry, but I don't want to be myself right now."
With a slow, deliberate motion, Clark slid the ring onto the index finger of his left hand. Blue-red veins traced across his palm, crawling up his arm, then fading as his eyes flashed red. Every unnecessary emotion vanished. He was no longer Clark Kent—not fully. With cold determination, he turned and left the school newspaper office.
Chloe's sobs broke through as she watched his retreating figure, powerless to stop him.
---
That night, after Jonathan and Martha returned to the farm, they found only Adrian there.
"Where did Clark go?" Jonathan asked, surprise in his voice.
"I don't know," Adrian replied calmly, sorting through his sketches. "He chose to exile himself."
"Exile?" Jonathan echoed, disbelief and concern mingling. "You mean he ran away from home?"
Adrian set down his drawings. "If he can't face the problems in front of him, Clark made what he believes is the correct choice: leaving. He said he didn't want to see us hurt, but this might also be a form of escape."
Martha's hands trembled as she rose. "Clark… he's still a child, Jonathan. He's never left us before."
Jonathan sighed, sinking into a chair. "I didn't think he would… I shouldn't have spoken so harshly. I didn't account for his state of mind."
"This isn't your fault. Clark just needs time. I believe he'll come back," Martha said softly, looking to Adrian.
Adrian shook his head. "It's useless. If this is his plan, he'll stay hidden until he's ready to return. Confrontation might pull him back, but we don't want that, Martha."
Jonathan gave a faint smile. "Perhaps he'll reconsider, like I did once. I ran away in high school, tried to join the Metropolis Sharks. A few days later, I returned—and abandoned the idea."
Martha nodded, though sorrow lingered in her eyes.
Dinner was quiet with Clark absent.
Afterwards, Adrian retreated to his room, as Jonathan asked him to try to find his brother and report immediately if he located him.
Using Super Vision, Adrian scanned Metropolis. The Homelander template in his system was unsealed to ninety-five percent, expanding his observational range to cover the entire city. Still, there were no signs of Clark. The city was too vast.
"Is he hiding from me deliberately?" Adrian muttered, tossing his pen onto the desk.
After a moment of contemplation, he decided to go to Metropolis. Activating Super Speed, he left the farm through the window, moving to an isolated corner before ascending into the sky.
Thud! His feet landed firmly before the Justice Society Headquarters.
He pushed open the doors, switched on the lights, and sat at the round table, scanning the city for Clark.
The hall was silent, its heroic portraits replaced with Adrian's "Dark Cthulhu-style" artworks. The creed of the Justice Society, once reading, "A new generation of young people pursuing justice and the American spirit," had been replaced by Adrian with, "God bless America, God bless you!"
Buzz! The Cosmic Scepter he carried leapt into the air, glowing golden, guiding him toward a target.
Frowning, Adrian followed as it shot through the window and transformed into a stream of light streaking toward Blue Valley.
---
Meanwhile, at Blue Valley Hospital, Courtney lay asleep in her ward.
Outside, a figure in a blue mask stood silently, exuding a chilling coldness.
After observing her, he touched the doorknob, encasing it in ice before opening it.
The stranger walked to her bedside.
"Hmph!" Courtney sensed danger, awakening instantly. She recoiled at the intruder.
"Relax," the man said, raising a finger to shush her. "If I were you, I wouldn't scream."
"Who—who are you?" she asked, shivering.
"You may call me Icicle, leader of the Injustice Society," he said, his smile faint. "You've always wanted to confront me, haven't you? Our 'Little Star,' Stargirl."
"I'm not Stargirl—I've left the Justice Society!" Courtney corrected, indignation in her tone.
"Ah, the Justice Society is already in ruins," Icicle said, intrigued. "But someone has taken over, expelled you, and claimed its authority?"
Courtney's hand slid beneath the pillow, grasping the dagger Pat had given her for self-defense.
"And who is this person who now leads the Society?" Icicle inquired. "If you reveal his name and origin, I may spare you from pursuing Brainwave's death."
"I didn't kill Brainwave!" she insisted, voice firm. "He's alive, though incapacitated."
Icicle smirked. "Half-dead is no different from dead in my eyes."
Before further threats could be made, he exhaled a cold breath at a vase. It froze instantly, shattering with a crack.
"Your fate could be the same, Stargirl," he said flatly.
"I—I understand," she stammered, drawing her dagger and striking.
Bang! Icicle blocked her attack with two fingers, letting out a soft sneer.
"This attack is meaningless. Only the Star Scepter could give me trouble," he said, cold amusement in his tone.
Courtney cried out as the dagger snapped in his grip.
"Very well. Since you refuse to cooperate, you will suffer," Icicle said, preparing his next move.
But before he could act, a golden streak of light smashed through the window.
A Staff struck him on the head, and a blue ice armor formed on his arm to absorb the impact.