Bane, My Suffering

The parched earth cracked beneath the cold wind. In the blink of an eye, it was already the autumn of 1998.

This year had been strangely peaceful—so peaceful that Locke had nearly forgotten Logan's warnings about a "life-or-death crisis."

Sometimes, when he woke from dreams in the middle of the night, he would touch the blue ladybug on his chest and even wonder whether those two people from the future had ever truly existed.

After all, what crisis could there be?

Standing atop the barn, Locke looked at the cracked fields in the distance with a bitter smile.

This year's greatest crisis was nature itself—

The El Niño phenomenon.

The abnormal warm current in the Pacific Ocean had brought the worst drought America's Midwest had seen in a decade.

"Dad!"

Dio's voice came from below. The blond boy carried two sacks of seeds over his shoulders, his red eyes narrowed into slits beneath the blazing sun.

"I've sorted and packed the short-season soybean and sorghum seeds!"

A wise choice.

Locke jumped down from the barn and patted his son's shoulder.

Short-season soybeans had a growing period of less than a hundred days. Their planting and harvest perfectly avoided the water-demanding period during the scorching heat of July and August, while also escaping the disaster of plummeting corn and oat prices caused by policy changes.

That made the Kents the only farmers in Smallville who had barely been affected by El Niño.

As for the sorghum, Locke had bought a few bags on the side because it was drought-resistant.

He planned to set aside an experimental field after winter and give it a try.

"It'll just be the two of us for dinner."

Locke ruffled Dio's blond hair. "Martha left behind a blueberry pie recipe. Want to try it?"

Dio's expression instantly turned horrified. "Are you trying to poison your only son?"

The corner of Locke's mouth twitched.

Did he want to cook?

News had arrived today: Martha's cousin had passed away. Jonathan's family had rushed off to attend the funeral this morning.

They probably would not be back for several days.

Without Martha, the kitchen goddess, he had no choice but to cook for himself.

Otherwise, father and son could only go mooch meals off old Bob.

Time passed, and the sun set.

The kitchen was piled high with ingredients bought from town—

Cakes from the bakery, Martha's pre-made blueberry pie, and—

Beef, pork, chicken, the meat of all kinds of creatures.

"Dad." Dio stared at the mountain of meat on the counter, the corner of his mouth twitching. "Should we maybe change things up?"

"Dio..." Locke sighed and picked up the cookbook Martha had left behind. "Do you think I don't want to?"

"..."

Father and son stared blankly at the table full of raw meat. At last, Locke slapped his thigh.

"Looks like I'll have to give you your birthday present early."

"What present?"

"A three-day trip to Metropolis!"

"On the night of the third day, we might even make it back in time to reunite with Jonathan and the others!" Locke pulled out a city promotional poster as if performing a magic trick. "But more importantly, we can eat in Metropolis."

"Authentic Chinese food!"

Dio's eyes lit up instantly. He had long been craving a certain restaurant.

And most importantly—

Clark would not be around for those three days!

They left immediately.

The World and Star Platinum appeared at the same time, quickly stuffing all the food into the freezer.

But when Locke pulled open the front door—

"It's snowing, Dad!"

Dio looked up at the falling snow in surprise.

It really was.

Locke raised a brow. Perhaps this was another effect brought on by El Niño.

But before he could speak—

A hoarse voice suddenly pierced through the wind and snow amid the heavy flakes.

"Locke! Dio!"

Summoning Star Platinum and extending the Star Platinum Telescope, Locke looked in the direction his stand was watching.

Well.

A weathered man in ragged clothes slowly approached them, smoke continuously drifting from the cigarette in his mouth.

This guy.

The twelve letters he had sent had all vanished without a trace.

Locke had thought Logan was dead.

Taking three steps in two, Logan reached the porch, snow shaking loose from his boots.

He took a deep drag on his cigarette, its ember flickering against the snowy backdrop.

"Today's the kid's birthday, right?"

He grinned, revealing white teeth. "I came all this way for it."

"Of course, I have to leave tomorrow, just in case."

"..."

Locke fell silent for a moment.

"Dio's birthday is in three days."

"..."

"Hahaha." Logan gave an awkward laugh. "Can't we celebrate early?"

"So." The corner of Locke's mouth twitched. "Why didn't you write and ask?"

"And did you really receive the letters I sent?"

"Of course." Logan nodded. "My friend, I read them all. I just didn't have time to reply."

"Oh?"

A teasing glint flashed through Dio's red eyes. "Then what did Dad write in the first letter?"

The snow suddenly fell even harder.

Logan's cigarette hissed as the snow put it out.

"Well, uh..."

His steel claws extended and retracted unconsciously as Logan said awkwardly, "I remember it was probably... about the farm?"

"The first letter." Locke pressed a hand to his forehead helplessly. "I asked whether they had found you."

"No." Logan snorted. "If I were that easy to find, they wouldn't have been hunting me for so many years."

"Their efficiency is as poor as ever."

"Is that so?" Locke raised a brow. "Then come inside first."

"Dad!" Dio said helplessly.

"Don't be impatient, kid. It's still snowing." Locke rubbed Dio's head and smiled. "We'll go tomorrow morning after the snow stops."

"Damn it..."

Dio glared darkly at Logan, who had ruined his plans.

"Hiss—"

Logan shuddered all over and sucked in a breath. He quickly turned his head, only to find—

Nothing but Dio with his head lowered.

Was he overthinking it?

Wiping away the sweat that had somehow appeared on his forehead, Logan let out a breath.

He was scaring himself.

The next morning, Logan stood beneath the porch and stretched lazily.

He let out a loud belch, the scent of blueberry pie and whiskey condensing into white mist in the cold air.

"Burp—!"

"Locke, your cooking's way better than prison food." He grinned and patted his bulging belly.

Leaning against the doorframe with his arms folded, Locke stared at Logan irritably.

"Ahem!"

Pretending not to notice, Logan turned and vigorously ruffled Dio's blond hair.

The boy was just about to lose his temper when Logan waved a hand and strode toward the forest.

It left Dio feeling as powerless as though he had punched cotton!

"Kid, keep an eye on your dad."

"No need to say goodbye to Uncle Logan!"

"Call me if anything happens!"

"I wrote my number on a note and left it on the table."

"Swish!"

The old wolf's steps left a string of deep footprints in the snow, only for them to be buried by windblown powder moments later.

Locke watched the direction in which that figure disappeared until Dio tugged at his sleeve impatiently.

"Dad, if we don't leave now, it'll snow again."

"Got it, brat."

Locke chuckled, nodded, and led Dio toward the pickup buried in snow nearby.

Well.

The pickup was not in very good shape.

Locke brushed the snow off the hood, but froze as he opened the door.

The tires had sunk into a snow pit half a meter deep.

Squatting down and poking at the hardened crust of snow, Dio sighed. "How about we just pretend we went?"

"That won't do."

"Dio."

"Remember this." Locke wore a mysterious smile. "We're stand users."

As soon as he spoke, a purple phantom appeared behind Locke. Star Platinum's arm muscles bulged as it grabbed the bumper and gave a light lift!

The entire vehicle was pulled out of the snow pit like a toy and set steadily onto the firm road.

"?!"

Dio blinked as the World flickered through the morning mist.

But when the golden stand imitated it and tried to lift the rear of the truck, the tires merely spun twice comically in the snow.

"That's not fair!"

The boy's cheeks flushed red with effort, but Locke's hearty laughter rang out across the snowfield.

"What's the rush? You're only ten."

"You've got plenty of room to grow."

As the engine roared, Dio pressed his face against the icy car window.

In the rearview mirror, the smoke rising from the farmhouse gradually dwindled into a thin line. Farther away, near the edge of the forest, there seemed to be a black dot.

Was that Logan?

Just as he was about to point it out to Locke, the centrifugal force of the turn made the entire snowfield spin in his vision, like an overturned candy jar scattering dazzling sunlight everywhere.

Forget it. A mere drifter was not worth Lord Dio wasting his breath on.

On the snowfield.

The black dot Dio had ignored suddenly grew larger, and a tall figure slowly rose from the snowdrift.

Snow slid from his broad shoulders in soft cascades.

He wore a pure white mask, and beneath it, a pair of cold eyes watched the departing pickup through binoculars.

The image of the pickup moving for no apparent reason lingered in his mind.

He had been tracking that wolf for three months. He had not expected—

He pressed a phone button.

"..."

"So it's you." A deep laugh came from the other end.

"One?"

"..."

The phone fell silent for several seconds, as though the person on the other end had only then understood what the man meant.

"Of course."

"You know, most of the mutants in America are dead now, killed in that riot and the mutant crimes that followed."

"Other than that wolf, we haven't had any news of mutants in a long time."

The man silently lowered his binoculars. The person addressed as sir also paused, then seemed to smile even more deeply as he spoke.

"As long as they're mutants."

"You sent me to hunt wolves because there was only one mutant wolf left alive in the world, wasn't there?"

"If you can bring back anything else, I'd welcome that too."

There was no response. The man merely clenched his fists, but that did not stop the voice on the phone from continuing:

"I need to study the X Gene."

"And you want your wife and son back by your side, don't you?"

At that, the man's breathing hitched slightly.

"I heard the child is called Bane, is that right?"

"Clearly, it was the father who committed the crime, yet after the government exiled him, they still made the son atone for his father's sins."

"Ah, how pitiful."

"But it's all right." The gentleman's voice carried a hint of ease. "As long as you bring me even a single mutant."

"I can get your wife and son out of prison and send them back to you."

"..."

"Fine." He finally spoke, his voice hoarse.

"Then good luck. Show the courage you had when you fought the Conquest Army! Our King Cobra, Devil's Agent—"

"Mr. Edmond Durance!"

After ending the call, Durance looked toward the direction Logan had left, then turned toward the pickup truck carrying Locke and Dio away. A flicker of struggle passed through his eyes, but it was soon replaced by resolve.

Everything was for Bane...

My son, who suffered because of me.

Taking a deep breath, Durance tucked the binoculars into his coat and turned toward his car.

His footprints lay heavy in the snow.

Behind him, the snowy plains remained silent, and the sunlight remained brilliant.

[Next:]

[Grandma Dio Enters Metropolis.]