Chapter Summaries

Clark Kent talked Davis out of revenge, but Rorschach seized Davis to absorb his cosmic energy and fought off Clark's attempts to stop him. The chapter ended with Rorschach knocking Clark into a boulder and shattering it.

• Clark Kent took Davis away from the party and persuaded him to abandon his revenge, and the two parted on friendly terms.
• Rorschach confronted Davis, sensed his cosmic energy, and grabbed him to absorb it despite Davis's struggle and attack.
• Clark arrived and demanded that Rorschach release Davis, but Rorschach dismissed him.
• Clark charged at Rorschach, who punched him into a crater; Clark recovered and attacked again at greater speed.
• Rorschach punched Clark a second time, sending him into a massive boulder and shattering it.

Rorschach defeated Clark Kent in a fight, then exploited Clark’s belief that they shared Kryptonian origins. After telling Clark about Krypton’s destruction, Rorschach claimed to be his big brother.

• Rorschach absorbed Davis’s cosmic energy and threw him aside before fighting Clark Kent.
• Rorschach overwhelmed Clark with his strength and speed, then countered Clark’s heat vision with a stronger version of his own.
• Clark asked who Rorschach was, and Rorschach introduced himself as Homelander.
• Clark guessed that Rorschach was an alien like him, and Rorschach pretended to confirm that they were both from Krypton.
• Rorschach told Clark about Krypton’s destruction and Superman’s origins, then claimed to be Clark’s big brother.

Rorschach confirmed that meteor freaks’ cosmic energy was safe to absorb but too scarce to meet his needs, so he continued searching for a way to remove kryptonite’s toxins. He discovered a secret laboratory holding dozens of meteor freaks and entered it, leaving the facility’s staff incapacitated and the prisoners still in their cells.

• Clark Kent questioned Rorschach about coming to Smallville and what he had done to Davis, and Rorschach left without revealing his reasons.
• Rorschach reflected that harvesting meteor freaks was too slow and that he needed to solve the kryptonite toxin problem.
• Rorschach used his X-ray vision to find a secret laboratory outside Smallville with dozens of captured meteor freaks and a supply of kryptonite.
• Rorschach entered the laboratory, knocked out its guards, workers, researchers, and security personnel, and found the meteor freaks in dormant states inside individual rooms.

Rorschach harvested the sleeping meteor freaks at Base Three while Clark Kent tried to free them, then used kryptonite to keep Clark from intervening. After Lex Luthor learned the base had fallen, he ordered the untested Ares to capture the unknown intruder alive.

• Clark Kent arrived at Base Three while investigating the disappearances of Smallville residents and recognized the captives as people reported missing or dead.
• Rorschach blocked Clark from reaching the control panel and refused to delay his plan to harvest the meteor freaks.
• Rorschach punched Clark and used green kryptonite to incapacitate him, then harvested the captives one by one.
• Lex Luthor learned Base Three had been breached and ordered Ares to capture the unknown superhuman alive.
• Rorschach finished harvesting the last meteor freak and recalled the kryptonite from beside Clark.

Clark Kent freed the Smallville meteor freaks while Rorschach collected kryptonite from the secret research base. Lex Luthor sent his artificial meteor freak Ares to capture Rorschach, but Rorschach easily injured him before Ares revealed his super-regeneration.

• Clark Kent opened the meteor freaks’ cells, checked that the Smallville residents were safe, and called the police before watching from the shadows.
• Rorschach gathered the kryptonite stored in the laboratory and prepared to move it.
• Ares appeared at the laboratory, and Lex Luthor ordered him to capture Rorschach alive.
• Rorschach struck Ares with one punch, caving in his chest and sending him into a pile of debris.
• Ares regenerated his injuries almost instantly, surprising Rorschach with his combination of powers.

Rorschach defeated Lex Luthor’s super meteor freak, Ares, by countering his abilities and absorbing his cosmic energy, leaving him powerless. After knocking Ares unconscious, Rorschach escaped with the kryptonite as police surrounded the laboratory.

• Lex Luthor ordered the invisible Ares to attack Rorschach, but Rorschach spotted him with X-ray vision and blasted him with heat rays.
• Rorschach seized Ares and withstood his flames, then absorbed the cosmic energy that powered his abilities.
• Ares lost his powers and regained his original consciousness, so Rorschach knocked him unconscious instead of killing him.
• Rorschach loaded the kryptonite into a truck and used telekinesis to carry it through the laboratory roof as police arrived.

Rorschach traced the underground laboratory to Lex Luthor and went to the Luthor Mansion to demand his help finding meteor freaks and researching kryptonite. Lex Luthor recognized that Rorschach was giving him no choice but to cooperate.

• Rorschach disposed of the truck and concluded that the laboratory's exposure would not lead anyone back to him.
• Rorschach used his super hearing to identify Lex Luthor as the mastermind behind the underground laboratory.
• Lex Luthor reviewed Rorschach's image and reflected on the losses caused by the laboratory's exposure.
• Rorschach appeared at the Luthor Mansion and demanded that Lex Luthor find meteor freaks and research a way to solve his kryptonite problem.
• Rorschach forbade Lex Luthor from experimenting on meteor freaks or researching kryptonite as a means of creating them.
• Lex Luthor acknowledged that Rorschach was not giving him a choice about cooperating.

Rorschach forced Lex Luthor to experience the danger of being stranded on Mount Everest before returning him to Luthor Mansion and demanding that he find the meteor freak. Lex Luthor sought Professor Finn’s help investigating the meteor-exposed man, unaware that Finn recognized him as Kal-El.

• Rorschach took Lex Luthor from Luthor Mansion to Mount Everest and left him in the freezing cold to teach him a lesson.
• Lex Luthor collapsed from the cold, then woke back at his desk with Rorschach nearby.
• Rorschach warned Lex Luthor to find the meteor freak and threatened not to rescue him next time.
• Lex Luthor called Professor Finn and showed him footage of the meteor-exposed man's abilities.
• Professor Finn said he needed time to investigate, then privately exclaimed that he had found Kal-El.

Brainiac tracked Rorschach down, mistook him for Kal-El, and demanded that he admit his identity. Rorschach denied it and questioned Brainiac about Krypton, but their confrontation began when Brainiac attacked and Rorschach blasted him back with heat rays.

• Professor Finn searched online for Rorschach’s feats, decided he was Kal-El, and left in a sonic boom; he was actually Brainiac, who sought to free General Zod from the Phantom Zone.
• Rorschach returned home and considered how to make Lex Luthor cooperate, wishing he had Charles’s telepathy to help.
• Brainiac burst into Rorschach’s home, called him Kal-El, and accused him of hiding his identity.
• Rorschach denied being Kal-El, demanded Brainiac identify himself and explain Krypton, and asked for Krypton’s coordinates.
• Brainiac transformed his hand into a blade and attacked, but it could not pierce Rorschach’s chest.
• Rorschach mocked Brainiac and struck him with heat rays, sending him tumbling backward.

Rorschach defeated Brainiac, learned Krypton's coordinates, and discovered a mysterious cube among the robot's remains. The cube's slot seemed to match Clark Kent's pendant, giving Rorschach a new lead.

• Brainiac attacked Rorschach with heat vision, but Rorschach overpowered and psychically restrained him.
• Rorschach discovered Brainiac was a robot and demanded Krypton's coordinates; Brainiac asked for a drop of Rorschach's blood in return, but Rorschach refused.
• Brainiac realized Rorschach was not Kal-El and gave him Krypton's coordinates in exchange for being released.
• Rorschach crushed Brainiac into debris, then found an intact metal cube among the remains.
• Rorschach recognized that the cube's recessed slot matched Clark Kent's pendant and suspected it was the cube's key.

Rorschach visited Kent Farm and showed Clark a cube he had obtained from Brainiac. The cube fit together with the pendant Clark had found in his spaceship, leaving Clark wondering whether it was a Kryptonian key.

• Rorschach decided to visit Clark and brought gifts to Kent Farm.
• Jonathan and Martha welcomed Rorschach and told him about Clark’s life and plans.
• Clark returned home, recognized Rorschach as Homelander, and questioned why he had come.
• Rorschach placed Brainiac’s cube before Clark, who compared it with his pendant and found that the two pieces fit together.

Rorschach and Clark Kent used Clark’s key to activate a Kryptonian device, which raised the Fortress of Solitude in the wilderness outside Smallville. Clark’s doubts about his Kryptonian origins vanished, but the fortress was empty when they entered.

• Rorschach and Clark Kent agreed to cooperate, with Rorschach keeping ownership of the device and offering Clark compensation or a favor for his help.
• After dinner, Rorschach and Clark left Kent Farm and went to an uninhabited mountain to test the device.
• Clark handed Rorschach the key around his neck, and Rorschach inserted it into the cube’s slot.
• The cube shook the ground and formed a crystal fortress, which Rorschach recognized as the Fortress of Solitude.
• Clark entered the fortress with Rorschach, excited by the Kryptonian technology, but they found it empty.

Clark Kent activated the Fortress of Solitude and met a hologram of his father, Jor-El, who confirmed that Clark was Kryptonian and the last son of Krypton. Rorschach left the fortress to Clark in exchange for a favor, while Jor-El remained puzzled by Rorschach’s powers and identity.

• Rorschach told Clark Kent that the fortress might have belonged to his father and invited him to activate its console.
• Clark inserted his key and spoke with Jor-El, who recognized him as Kal-El and objected to Rorschach’s presence.
• Clark explained that Rorschach had found the fortress, then asked what price he had to pay to keep it; Rorschach gave it to him in exchange for a favor.
• After Rorschach left, Jor-El confirmed Clark was a Kryptonian and the last son of Krypton, and Clark told him that Homelander had already revealed Krypton’s destruction and his origins.
• Jor-El answered Clark’s questions about his identity and wondered how a non-Kryptonian like Rorschach could possess Kryptonian abilities.

Brainiac attacked Clark Kent at the Fortress of Solitude, overwhelmed him with black kryptonite, and split off another version of Clark. Meanwhile, Rorschach kept tabs on Lex Luthor until an anxious Clark arrived and asked him for help.

• Clark Kent said goodbye to Jor-El at the Fortress of Solitude, but Brainiac appeared and seized control of the fortress.
• Brainiac attacked Clark Kent, who grew stronger during the fight and knocked Brainiac down.
• Brainiac used black kryptonite on Clark Kent, causing another version of Clark to emerge from him.
• Rorschach observed Lex Luthor continuing to hunt meteor freaks while secretly building a hidden laboratory.
• Clark Kent visited Rorschach and urgently asked him for help.

Clark Kent came to warn Rorschach that Brainiac had returned to Smallville, but Darkseid Homelander interrupted them and attacked. Rorschach easily repelled him, then restrained him with telekinetic power.

• Rorschach noticed Clark Kent was wounded, and Clark warned him that Brainiac had arrived in Smallville with a dangerous scheme.
• Rorschach realized that the robot he had killed earlier was Brainiac and asked Clark to explain what had happened.
• Darkseid Homelander burst into Rorschach's house, mocked Clark, and knocked the powerless Clark unconscious.
• Darkseid Homelander attacked Rorschach, but Rorschach punched him through the wall and sent him crashing into the street.
• Darkseid Homelander charged again, and Rorschach restrained him with telekinetic power.

Rorschach restrained Darkseid Superman and helped Clark Kent use Black Kryptonite to merge with his darker counterpart. Clark revealed that Brainiac had taken the Fortress of Solitude and planned to release Kryptonian prisoners, so Rorschach agreed to stop him.

• Rorschach easily restrained Darkseid Superman, who mocked Clark Kent for seeking Homelander's help.
• Clark asked Rorschach to restore him, explaining that Black Kryptonite could merge him with Darkseid Superman.
• Rorschach produced Black Kryptonite, and Clark pressed it against Darkseid Superman, merging the two into one.
• Clark apologized to Rorschach for Darkseid Superman's actions and revealed that Brainiac had recruited his other self to help release Kryptonian prisoners.
• Rorschach agreed to stop Brainiac, and Clark explained that Brainiac had taken the Fortress of Solitude, which could provide access to the Phantom Zone.

Rorschach and Clark Kent searched for Brainiac but could not locate him, while Brainiac opened a portal from the Fortress of Solitude and freed Zod’s wife Usa and two of his generals. Usa learned about Earth and Homelander, then declared that she would conquer the planet and give it to Zod.

• Rorschach and Clark Kent searched across Earth for Brainiac but found no trace of him.
• In the Arctic Fortress of Solitude, Brainiac used Big Supes’s blood to open a portal.
• Usa, Noah, and Adala emerged from the portal, but General Zod remained trapped in the Phantom Zone.
• Brainiac told Usa that Jor-El’s son and another Kryptonian called Homelander were on Earth.
• Usa decided to clear away every obstacle and take Earth as a gift for Zod.

Usa and two other Kryptonian prisoners arrived in Smallville and attacked the town, demanding that Clark Kent join the House of Zod. Clark fought Adala but was badly defeated, while Usa ordered Noah to find Homelander.

• Rorschach and Clark Kent detected three Kryptonians flying toward Smallville, whom they suspected were prisoners released by Brainiac.
• Usa, Adala, and Noah landed in Smallville, where Usa declared they had come to conquer the planet and attacked the town with her heat rays.
• Clark Kent confronted the Kryptonians and refused Usa's demand that he join the House of Zod.
• Adala fought Clark and beat him until he could no longer get up.
• Usa questioned where Homelander was and ordered Noah to find him.

Rorschach confronted Usa and the House of Zod, insisting that he was not a Kryptonian and refusing to join their conquest. After he effortlessly killed Adala and seized Usa, her heat rays failed to harm him.

• Rorschach arrived and told Usa and Noah that he was Homelander, not a Kryptonian, and had no intention of joining them.
• Usa ordered Rorschach to join the House of Zod or perish, and he warned them not to provoke him.
• Adala attacked Rorschach, who caught him by the throat and killed him with a light squeeze.
• Usa tried to negotiate after seeing Adala die, but Rorschach rushed her and seized her by the throat.
• Usa fired heat rays at Rorschach, but they left him completely unharmed.

Rorschach killed the three Kryptonians who had fought him and crushed another Brainiac avatar, recovering The Fortress of Solitude. He and Clark Kent returned to the fortress so they could consult Jor-El.

• Rorschach snapped Usa's neck, then used telekinesis to stop Noah from fleeing and killed him too.
• Clark Kent watched in shock as Rorschach effortlessly defeated the Kryptonians, while Brainiac realized he was no match for Homelander.
• Rorschach tracked Brainiac to a clock tower and crushed him, causing The Fortress of Solitude to fall from his body.
• Rorschach gave The Fortress of Solitude back to Clark Kent and said he needed to speak with Jor-El.
• Clark Kent activated The Fortress of Solitude in a remote wilderness, and it rose before them.