[Third Person Pov]
Clark, Momo, and Lala all stood frozen in place, stunned into silence as they watched Golden Darkness kick her chair away with a sharp motion. The noose she had fashioned from her own hair construct tightened instantly around her neck, lifting her slight frame into the air where she began to sway gently back and forth.
Her face, however, showed no signs of struggle. There was no desperate gasping, no frantic clawing at her throat, no bulging eyes or flushed skin. She simply hung there, her expression remaining completely straight and indifferent, as if she wasn't dangling from a makeshift gallows. No shortness of breath, no visible strain in her muscles, nothing. Just calm, emotionless stillness.
The initial wave of panic and horror that had washed over Momo and Lala slowly began to ebb away as the seconds ticked by and it became clear that nothing terrible was actually happening. Despite having hung herself, Golden Darkness remained perfectly fine, her body showing no ill effects whatsoever from the lack of oxygen or the pressure on her neck.
Clark finally broke the heavy silence by scratching his eyebrow with one finger and letting out a soft, weary exhale. "Your body is made out of nanobots," he said quietly, stating the obvious fact he had momentarily forgotten in the shock of the moment. "That means it's self-sustaining. You don't need oxygen to survive."
Golden Darkness let out a small, resigned sigh. The hair construct that had been holding her up smoothly came undone, lowering her lightly until her feet touched the floor once more. She stood there for a moment, brushing her long golden hair back into place with a casual motion. "…I forgot," she admitted in a flat tone.
Lala and Momo exchanged a quick, uncertain glance with each other, neither of them quite knowing what to say in response to what had just unfolded.
"That was a bit extreme, don't you think?" Lala finally asked after a few awkward seconds, offering a strained smile that didn't quite reach her eyes.
Golden Darkness's gaze shifted over to Lala, studying her for a brief moment with careful, assessing eyes. Then she bowed her head politely in acknowledgment of the other girl's presence and status. "You're Princess Lala, daughter of the conqueror of the universe, are you not?"
"I am," Lala replied, her usual bright and friendly smile returning easily to her face.
Clark raised a hand toward Lala in a gentle stopping motion, and Golden Darkness's eyes immediately moved from the princess to settle on him. He was still dressed in his full Superman outfit, the red cape draped over his shoulders. The two of them locked eyes properly for the first time since the earlier confrontation. They simply stared at each other in silence, the tension between them thickening in the air. Momo shifted uncomfortably where she stood, growing tense and nervous for reasons she couldn't quite put into words.
"What are you—" Momo began, but Clark interrupted her by speaking directly to Golden Darkness.
"How are you feeling?" he asked suddenly, his voice steady and even, never breaking eye contact with her.
"I'm fine," she answered calmly. "Nothing I can't handle."
"Sol," Clark called out, issuing a quiet command. His cape began to shift and reshape itself, forming a simple but sturdy chair beneath him. He lowered himself into it and leaned forward slightly, elbows resting on his knees. "I'm sorry if I hit you too hard earlier," he said. "I hope you understand why I did what I did."
"I understand," Golden Darkness replied without hesitation. "I attacked you, and you defended yourself. Failing to kill you and ending up imprisoned like this is only the result of my own incompetence." As she spoke, she used strands of her living hair to reach over and right the toppled chair she had kicked away earlier, then sat down on it with composed grace.
"No," Clark said, shaking his head slowly. "You were being mind controlled. You aren't the one responsible here. The ones responsible are the people who sent you here and tasked you with killing me." He let out a quiet sigh.
"Not entirely true," Darkness corrected him. She closed her eyes for a moment before continuing. "Part of that was still me. I was still myself."
"Care to elaborate?" Clark asked, raising an eyebrow in quiet curiosity.
Darkness nodded once. "My mind wasn't taken over by another person. I was still myself. I was simply given suggestions. If my mind had been completely taken over, I wouldn't have been as coordinated as I was, nor would I have been able to use my powers properly."
"Whether or not your mind was fully taken over or you were just subjected to mental suggestions," Clark replied, "it doesn't change the fact that you were still manipulated and under the influence of someone else. Which I will ask you about in more detail later, but first…"
One of the Superman robots approached from the side, carrying a warm plate of food along with a drink. It came to a smooth stop beside Clark and stood waiting.
Clark reached out and took the tray from the robot with a polite "Thank you." The invisible barrier that had been separating them opened completely. He stepped through it and extended the tray toward Golden Darkness. "Here. I would prefer it if you ate something."
The moment the plate came into view, Golden Darkness's eyes turned ice-cold. She sprang up from her seat so quickly that the chair toppled over again with a loud clatter. Strands of her hair shot forward like living weapons, forming sharp blades that pressed firmly against his throat, his heart, and both of his eyes in an instant.
Her glare was as cold and sharp as frozen steel. "I won't fall for the same trick twice," she said, her voice low and dangerous. "I'm not nearly as foolish as that."
"I see," Clark said calmly, not flinching even with the blades so close to vital points. "So that's how they did it. They hid the device to influence your thoughts in the food they fed you and used it to subtly start influencing your actions." He carefully moved the plate away from one of the blades with a slow, deliberate motion.
Her eyes trembled slightly at his words, a flicker of something raw passing through them before she forced herself to calm down. It was a skill she had honed well over her years as an assassin.
Clark pushed the blade away from his eyes with two fingers, his movements calm and unhurried. "I think you're forgetting something," he said, his voice low.
His eyes suddenly flared crimson red as he leaned down closer to Golden Darkness. The shift in his presence was immediate and heavy. She trembled despite herself, every assassin instinct screaming danger. A suffocating pressure pressed down on her, Clark's spiritual power outlining his body in a faint but unmistakable golden line that made the air itself feel thicker.
"I'm stronger and way more powerful than you could ever possibly imagine," Clark continued in a cold tone that caught both Lala and Momo completely off guard. "What makes you believe you are of any use to me?"
"Clark, stop it. You're scaring her," Momo said with a deep frown, stepping forward slightly.
Clark ignored her completely and kept his gaze locked on Golden Darkness. "You personally witnessed what I'm capable of. I'm stronger than you, faster than you, and by far more durable. Tell me, what benefit do I gain by having you under my control?"
Golden Darkness bit her lower lip hard, her glare defiant even as the pressure weighed on her. "I could think of one…"
Clark scoffed and straightened up to his full height, looking down at her. "Honey, you're not my type."
"Wha—" Golden Darkness stiffened, blinking rapidly. The sudden change in his tone and attitude threw her so far off balance that her brain seemed to short-circuit for a second.
"I mean, honestly, look at her," Clark said, motioning toward Lala with his thumb. "Do you really think I would be interested in you when I have someone as beautiful as Lala as my fiancée?"
Momo rolled her eyes in pure exasperation. Lala, on the other hand, immediately held both cheeks with her hands and started swaying side to side happily, her tail whipping out of control behind her. "Hehehe, you really think so? You think I'm beautiful?"
Everyone turned to look at Lala as if she genuinely needed confirmation of something so obvious.
Golden Darkness glanced at Lala, her eyes drifting briefly to the princess's generous assets, then back to Clark, and finally down at her own body. "I have total control of my body," she said matter-of-factly. "I can make myself bigger than her—"
*BONK!*
"Ow!" Golden Darkness cried out, crouching down instantly while clutching the top of her head. Tears prickled at the corners of her eyes as she stared up at Clark in genuine confusion. He looked thoroughly annoyed.
"Are you seriously giving me a sales pitch about your body, trying to make me reconsider or something?" Clark growled, glaring at her. "What the hell is the matter with you?"
Golden Darkness felt her face grow hot with embarrassment as she realized how that had indeed sounded.
She stood back up slowly, her hair constructs retracting and returning to normal. Her gaze dropped to the floor, distant and hollow.
Clark let out a long sigh and crouched down in front of her, bringing himself to her eye level. "You're cute, I'll give you that," he said, his voice much softer now. "But you're seriously not my type. You want to know what my purpose is in trying to feed you?"
He was on one knee now, looking directly into her eyes. "My goal is simple. It isn't to manipulate you or mind control you. It's just to fill the empty stomach of the little girl in front of me." His tone had gentled even more.
"I know you might not be used to good will after everything you've been through, but you're clearly weakened. You're low on energy, aren't you? You need to eat. Once you manage to recover properly, you can tell me who it was that did this to you, and I promise you—I'll make sure they regret ever taking advantage of you."
Clark held the plate of food out toward her once again.
Lala and Momo exchanged a quick, warm smile with each other.
Golden Darkness hesitated for a long moment, staring intently at Clark's face, searching for any hint of deception or hidden motive. When she found none, she hesitantly reached out and took the plate from his hand. "There's no need," she said quietly. "I'll settle the score myself. There's no need to involve yourself."
"That isn't for you to decide," Clark replied as he stood up. "For now, eat. Once you're done, we'll talk."
With that, he turned around and started walking away, leaving her with the warm meal.
********************************************
+20 advance Chapters on: patreon.com/Shadow_D_Monarch3