[Third Person's PoV]
The tiny baby boy lay nestled in the confines of a sleek, metallic capsule, swathed in a vibrant red blanket that provided little comfort against the unfamiliarity of his surroundings. Around him, the polished interior hummed with a low mechanical whir, its sleek panels pulsing with an otherworldly blue light. Outside the reinforced glass of his tiny compartment, a man and a woman moved frantically, their faces marked by the anguish of a decision too painful to bear.
'What is going on? Where am I?' The baby's mind raced with questions, his tiny fists clenching instinctively. The sheer oddity of coherent thought coming from an infant was unsettling, but the confusion in his small, panicked heart burned all the brighter.
With great effort, he raised one chubby, uncoordinated hand, marveling at how tiny and helpless it looked in the dim glow. The room seemed impossibly large, every sound amplified, every shadow looming. 'Am I dead? Or was I dead?' His memories flared in a blur— Sleeping, heard breaking in, shot. The realization hit him like a wave. 'I was dead. What is this place? I'm… a baby now. But why? How am I supposed to do anything? I'm just—'
A sudden flash caught his attention. The baby blinked as a woman, her face framed by dark hair, placed her trembling hand against the glass. Her eyes, a deep, sorrowful blue, brimmed with unshed tears. Despite the pounding in his tiny chest, he subconsciously reached out, the tips of his fingers pressing to the barrier between them. The contact, though cold and unyielding, sparked a warmth that made the woman's composure crack. A tear streaked down her cheek, followed closely by another. Moments later, a tall man with a strong jaw and eyes lined with steely determination appeared, his own hand joining hers on the glass.
'Who are these people? And why do they look so sad?' The baby's gaze roved across their matching suits, their vibrant, otherworldly armor bearing the same insignia—a bold, stylized S that seemed to pulse with life. Recognition flared within him, turning shock into a flood of realization. 'That's the symbol of the House of El… I'm baby Superman!'
The understanding barely had time to settle before the man straightened, his expression tightening with resolve. He whispered something hurried and inaudible, then broke away, leaving the woman with one last pained glance. She, too, stepped back reluctantly, her sob catching in her throat as the chamber hummed and shuddered to life.
The baby felt a rush as the compartment jerked beneath him, the figures in front of him receding. The soft glow of the room's lights blurred, replaced by a dazzling array of stars as the ship's viewport transformed the chaos of Krypton's farewell into an expanding void.
A deafening roar filled the silence. BOOOOOM!
The baby flinched at the sudden brilliance of light and heat. He turned his teary eyes to the view beyond the glass and beheld an unspeakable sight—the implosion of a world, collapsing upon itself in a cascade of molten fire and blinding white light. 'That was a planetary explosion, the Death of Krypton. How many, how many people have actually just died in front of me. When you actually think about what just happened I just saw the death of millions perhaps even billions of people get extinguished in a snap of a finger.'
'I know I don't know those people, I'm barely able to organize my own thoughts. But I can't get that woman's tears out of my head, she was mourning for the time she wouldn't be able to spend with her son.
Damn it, why am I suddenly crying? I'm not sad about their death, like I said I don't know those people. But the one I saw in front of me… I don't know I would be able to forget her expression'
Silent tears streamed down his face as he felt bad for the woman he briefly saw, sad that she wouldn't be able to spend time with her child.
Time lost meaning as the ship soared into the black tapestry of space, its small passenger suspended in a cradle of silence. Kal-El, reborn, stared numbly into the abyss as the vessel's course set toward its programmed destination—Earth. 'I've been reborn… I'm now Kal-El, last son of Krypton. Soon to be Superman,' he thought, pausing for a moment at the thought 'Would I even be Superman? The possibility of being a hero seems fun, but at the same time a hassle. I'm not as selfless or nice as the original Superman nor as forgiving. But at the same time could I just possibly ignore someone that needs help? How complicated'
The soft whir of the ship, paired with the glistening stars, finally coaxed his heavy eyelids to close. His tiny frame slumped against the seat as sleep overtook him, carrying him toward the only future he had left.
---
Planet: Earth
Location: Outskirts of Kamigoe City, Japan
Time: 3:33 AM
The crisp night air hummed with life as cicadas sang their relentless song. Beneath the cold, watchful eye of the moon, Seiko Ayase, a woman with striking snow-white hair tied in an elegant topknot, stood with one hand shielding her eyes. Her red-rimmed glasses glinted as she squinted into the dark, a lit cigarette hanging loosely from her lips. Draped over her shoulders was an oversized yellow cardigan that shifted with the night breeze, revealing a crisscrossed top underneath. A bat, worn with use, rested easily against her shoulder. Her blue jacket, emblazoned with a curious symbol, marked her as someone who rarely went unnoticed.
"Alright, I divined that I would have a lucky encounter around this area at this time, where is it?" she muttered, her sharp eyes scanning the stillness around her. The faint glow of a distant meteor shower caught her attention, a streak of light that seemed too bright, too deliberate. Her cigarette twitched as her mouth fell open. "That's no shooting star…"
The air grew tense as the object screamed closer, its speed unnatural, its path set. Yet Seiko didn't move. She had always trusted her divinations, and her divination told her this was where she was meant to be.
The ground quaked as the star crashed into the earth, gouging a trench into the soft soil as it skidded toward her and halted mere inches from her toes. Smoke billowed in erratic spirals, lit by the dying glow of the capsule's heat. She leaned down, the corners of her mouth quirking upward as her sharp eyes met the wide, curious gaze of a baby wrapped snugly in a crimson blanket.
"Well, well… NASA must've really messed up this time," she mused with a wry grin, leaning over to tap the glass with the end of her bat. The baby blinked at her, startled, then giggled, a sound so pure it tugged at the corners of her guarded heart. She took the cigarette from her mouth and crushed it beneath her sandal.
"As they say, finders keepers," she said with a smirk, her voice low and amused. With practiced efficiency, she reached out and pressed a hidden latch. The ship's hatch opened with a hiss, releasing a thin veil of mist. Reaching inside, she lifted the baby into her arms, cradling him gently against her.
"Hello there, little cutie," she whispered, her smirk softening to an affectionate smile. "Looks like you're mine now. And with another on the way, I guess I'll be doubling my grandmother duties."
Kal-El blinked, his vision swinging around as he eyed the woman in front of him. 'Wow she is beautiful, I didn't understand what she said but she appears nice. And seeing as she's the one that picked me up I'm either not in the DC universe or just not picked up by the Kents which is a bit of a downer since I really would have liked to meet them. But maybe… maybe this isn't so bad,' he thought, comforted by the warmth radiating from her.
Seiko tapped his tiny nose lightly, chuckling at the way he scrunched it up. "Don't worry, little one. You're in safe hands now."
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