"Urgh," Clark groaned, waking up reluctantly. Lex was pacing at the foot of the bed, on his cell phone. He didn't look happy.
"Yes I mean it, Baker... I don't care, I need it now... fine, I'll pay double, just do it." He hung up with a sigh. "Lex?" Clark frowned worriedly. "What was that?" "I still have contacts from my 'wild youth'," Lex replied, "I have a feeling we're going to need some heavy duty firepower." "More bombs?" Clark exclaimed. Lex nodded, "If my father is refining kryptonite, we need to find out where and destroy his supplies. And that's just the tip of the iceberg." "I know," Clark sighed. He was torn between his conscience, which sounded a lot like his father at that moment, and knowing that, realistically, this had to be done. It didn't really help that some small part of him was thinking how cool it would be to blow stuff up. Lex smiled gently. "This is a war of sorts, Clark, we have to do this. The risk to the future is too great not to risk loss of life now." "It's okay, Lex, I do know," Clark said, getting up to hug his lover reassuringly. "What your Dad is doing is dangerous. I mean, look at what kryptonite has done already, without putting money and science into it!" Lex nodded. "So we're clear, sure and agreed?" "Yes, Lex," Clark whispered, "Completely." Breathing out in relief, Lex kissed his lover, "Thank you. I love you." "I love you too," Clark said firmly. "Okay, get dressed. We start at LuthorCorp headquarters and my father's office." @>*~ Even though it was a Sunday, the LuthorCorp building was still full of employees. Clark was carrying two cases that they'd picked up from Lex's contact. He hadn't looked inside them. They'd used the private elevator to Lionel's office so not many people had seen them, but it would still be known that they were there. "It's okay, Clark, no one will bother me, and Dad's left for Smallville already," Lex said reassuringly. "Put the cases down. Let's start checking before we open the safe." Clark nodded. He felt distinctly nervous, but he started scanning the walls as Lex rifled through his father's desk. "Nothing," Lex sighed. "Same," Clark said quietly. "Shall I open the safe?" "Carefully," Lex said with a nod. "Yeah," Clark said dryly. Punching through the handle easily, Clark wrenched the door open, backing away quickly. Lex blinked. "Empty?!" he exclaimed, "It's fucking empty!" Clark grimaced. "Now what?" he asked. "He has to be keeping that kryptonite somewhere," Lex said thoughtfully. "You destroyed the files that were in here before, right?" "Yeah, and Mom stole the key to my ship," Clark replied. "Why do I feel like we need to destroy this entire building?" Lex sighed. At Clark's stricken look, Lex hastened to reassure his lover. "Don't worry, if it comes to that, we'll empty the building first." Clark nodded in relief. "Okay. Most of this building is legit, but I've heard there's a basement level I've never seen. We should start there." Lex frowned, "I bet Dad's elevator goes there directly. Come on." Clark picked up the cases and hurried after his lover. "You okay, love?" Lex asked quietly. "I think so," Clark said with a nod. "I just feel," he grinned suddenly, "I feel like James Bond." Lex laughed, feeling a weight lift off his shoulders. He had been truly worried that this would be too much for his lover. Too underhanded. "Hey, I can do sneaky," Clark said with a pout. "Besides, it has to be done. Even my father couldn't disagree." "You think?" Lex said disbelievingly. "He'll understand," Clark said, realising his lover was afraid his father would judge him badly. Lex sighed, "If you say so." The elevator chimed, but the door didn't open. "Secure level, please enter password." A voice said from the ceiling speaker. Lex groaned. Racking his brains, Lex typed in numerous words and numbers, anything he could think of that his father might use. But nothing seemed to work. "Any ideas?" he asked Clark. "Try 'God'," Clark snarked sarcastically. Lex blinked. "You know, it's so obvious, I wouldn't be surprised if it worked." He typed it into the wall panel quickly. The doors opened with a woosh. "You're a genius!" Lex laughed and kissed his lover. Cautiously, Lex poked his head out and looked round. "Coast's clear, let's go." Clark followed Lex into a brightly lit corridor. It was brightly lit and smelt sterile. He shivered. "It's like a hospital in here." "Probably is," Lex said with a shrug. "Shouldn't we, you know," Clark looked round nervously, "Be a bit more, um, covert?" "Covert?" Lex chuckled. "No, to be honest, I think we should act as if we're supposed to be here. Everyone knows who I am, I don't think we'll have too many problems." Just as he finished speaking, they rounded a corner and walked into a security guard. "Mr. Luthor, Sir." The guard looked surprised. Lex nodded briefly and started to walk again. The guard blocked him. "Let me pass," Lex said quietly. "I'm sorry, Sir, this floor is off limits," was the reply, "Level one clearance only." Clark winced. Lex narrowed his eyes, "Is that so?" "Yes, Sir," the guard nodded vigorously, "And well, you only have level two clearance." "Well, things have changed," Lex snapped, "How exactly do you think I got down here?" "Well, Sir, I don't know." The guard looked nervous. "My father gave me the password," Lex said with an exagerrated sigh. "While he is dealing with the aftermath of the terrorist attack in Smallville, I'm taking over here." "T-terrorist attack?" the guard stuttered. "Really. You weren't informed?" Lex shook his head, "Kent, remind me to tell Father to fire Olivia once I'm through here." "Yes Sir," Clark said quietly, looking at his shoes determinedly. It was either that or laugh. "Now then, I want this floor cleared of all personnel." "All?" the guard gasped, interrupting him. Lex glared at the unfortunate man. "All personnel. My Head of Security here will be inspecting the security measures and adding to them, I do not want anyone getting in the way." "Um, yes, Sir," the guard nodded, "Right away, Sir." Lex raised an eyebrow, "Well? Get to it." The security guard fled and Clark snorted, his lips trembling with laughter. "That rich brat training is handy, huh?" he breathed, trying not to giggle. Seeing Lex act so Luthor-like was hysterical. "Oh funny, ha ha," Lex growled, pouting at his lover. "Got us out of trouble, didn't it?" "Yes, dear," Clark agreed, still laughing. Lex sighed. "Come on, you ass, let's find an office or something." Clark scanned the floor quickly. "This way." They made their way to the office where they ran into the security guard again. "The floor is being cleared, Sir, do you need anything else?" "No, just check around to be sure and leave. This floor is off limits to everyone till I say otherwise," Lex ordered. "Yes, Sir." "Okay," Lex sighed, "Will you check everything in here? Memorise anything you think is important, destroy everything." He picked up one of the cases as Clark nodded. "I love you, Clark." Clark smiled gently. "I love you too." While Clark started in the office, Lex systematically made his way through each lab, setting one of his special order of bombs in each. Although small, they were effective; the C4 would explode, igniting the casing of polystyrene and petroleum which would ensure that everything burned. It would be enough to destroy that floor without overly affecting the rest of the building. Lex! Lex blinked as Clark's voice resounded in his head. He sounded as if he was in pain. Clark? I found... the kryptonite. "Oh shit!" Lex gasped. He ran as fast as he could back to the office. Clark was on the floor in front of an open door, the room beyond full of bars of kryptonite. "Oh fuck, Clark!" Lex yelled. He slammed the door shut and dragged Clark out into the corridor. "Clark, oh God, Clark, are you okay?" He dropped to his knees, gathering his lover into his arms. "Better," Clark groaned painfully. He'd never been close to that amount of pure kryptonite before. He felt as though he was going to throw up and his head was pounding, but it was better than the sheer agony he had been in. "What were you thinking?" Lex snapped, half out of his mind with worry and fear. "Sorry," Clark whispered, "It looked like an ordinary door, I didn't think..." Lex shook his head, breathing more easily now the green tinge to Clark's skin was fading. "You scared me half to death," he whispered back. On impulse, Lex bit into his wrist and held it to Clark's mouth. Clark sucked at his lover's blood eagerly, the sweetness and warmth returning strength to him as he drank it down. "Thank you," he sighed, letting go. "Did it help?" Lex asked anxiously. "Yeah." Clark frowned up at his lover, "Did you know it would?" Lex shook his head, "Hoped. Now, were you finished in there?" "Yes," Clark replied with a nod. "Okay, stay here." Lex got up and went back inside the office. He set a bomb on the desk, then opened the kryptonite vault again. He put the rest of the bombs from the first case inside and shut the door firmly. "Okay," he said returning to Clark's side with the second case. "Let's get out of here." He helped his lover to his feet and they hurried back to the elevator, going directly to the parking level. Lex drove them straight out and away, quickly heading for the outskirts of Metropolis and his secret apartment that he kept for emergencies like this. He didn't want them to be seen in Metropolis for now. Behind them a low rumbling and alarms going off was the only indication of the explosives wreaking havoc deep below LuthorCorp headquarters. Clark sighed in relief. It was by no means over, but they'd made a significant start. Just getting rid of that huge amount of kryptonite made Clark breathe a little easier. Nobodies' lives were going to be ruined by Lionel Luthor any more as far as he was concerned. Lex led his lover into the quiet, nondescript apartment and they collapsed on the couch, both sighing heavily. "Now what?" Clark asked quietly. "We need to stay out of sight for a while," Lex said thoughtfully. "But we still need to finish this. It's going to be tricky, Dad will be ready now. Realistically, we need to hit every facility at the same time to be effective, or he'll just move everything and we'll never get another chance. But there's no way..." Lex paused, trying to think. "What about the pack?" Clark asked. Lex blinked in surprise, "What?" "Well," Clark started hesitantly, "They're fast, strong and there's plenty of them, I'm sure they could coordinate a strike if we asked. After all, some of the files mention Wolfbreed DNA. I doubt they'd want your father messing with that." Lex stared at his lover, then smiled. "You really are a genius, you know that?!" He grabbed Clark and kissed him soundly. Clark grinned almost shyly, "How could you doubt it?" Lex laughed quietly. "I'd better phone Marina." Clark nodded. As Lex dialled Marina's number, Clark got up and went to the bedroom. He stripped off the smart suit Lex had made him wear with a sigh of relief, and went to the bathroom. He relieved himself quickly, then switched on the shower, getting under the hot water with a groan. Lex wandered in a few minutes later, still on the phone. He leaned against the wall, running hungry eyes up and down the lean, wet form of his lover as he listened to his father rant. "Dad," he said finally, "Why don't you explain to me what it is you're accusing me of, because I have no idea... no." He sighed, then laughed, "Come on, Dad, why would I destroy my own home? Oh really? Well, it so happens I've been in Metropolis for the past few days." He laughed at his father's snort. Clark watched Lex undress one handed, listening to the conversation anxiously. "That's right. No, I haven't been into work, why?" Lex asked, winking at Clark. "Really? Why, Dad, your security's getting a bit lax, isn't it? I'd do something about that if I were you." Smiling at Clark, and finally naked, Lex spoke a final time, "Now, Dad, if you don't mind, I've got a naked babe waiting for me in the shower." He switched off his phone with grim satisfaction. "Nice to know I was the first one my father thought of when he found the mansion in the state we left it," he said lightly, not bothering to hide the slight hurt he could still feel when it came to his father. "Come here," Clark said softly, drawing his lover under the water with him and into a hug. He held Lex tightly, kissing the top of his head. "Naked babe?" he asked quietly. Choking on a laugh, Lex nodded, nuzzling against the warm, wet skin of Clark's neck. "Clark?" he whispered. "Of course," Clark said quietly, tipping his head back. Lex bit down gently, taking comfort in the rich blood that filled his mouth. Clark's hands ran up and down his back soothingly as he quickly drank his fill. They were both too tired for it to turn sexual and they washed quickly, barely taking the time to dry off before they got into bed. "We're meeting with the pack later, Marina was glad to help out," Lex said quietly. "Okay," Clark said with a nod, "Now, sleep lover, you need it." Lex mumbled his agreement and buried his face in Clark's neck. @>*~ Clark pursed his lips a little nervously as they passed through the gates leading to the Wolfbreed family home. Even though they'd left on good terms before, he was still a little uneasy at returning. "Relax, Clark," Lex said quietly, pulling up outside the mansion. "It'll be fine." "I know," Clark sighed, "It's just this place makes me feel funny." Lex frowned, "Is it the fact that there's so many Wolfbreed around?" "I don't think so," Clark shook his head, "Maybe it's just because of what happened." Lex grimaced at the memory, "Yeah, maybe." "Lex, Clark, welcome back." Marina greeted them from the doorway. They got out of the car and made their way up the steps. "Marina." Lex shook hands warmly with his aunt. "Come in, everyone's waiting for you," she said with a smile. Unable to help himself, Clark took Lex's hand, squeezing tightly. Lex squeezed back reassuringly as they followed Marina to the back of the house; to the ballroom. The entire pack, minus the children, had gathered again and all eyes turned to Lex and Clark as they entered. Lex was greeted by the members of his immediate family, then they moved back, waiting expectantly. Lex began. "You may have already heard about the so-called terrorist attack on LuthorCorp today." There was a general murmur of assent and several nods. "Well, that was myself and Clark," he announced quietly. "We have discovered that my father is conducting highly illegal and unethical cloning experiments using meteor rock, which also involves use of Wolfbreed DNA." A gasp filled the room, then everyone started talking at once. "Pleae," Lex said loudly, raising his hands for silence. "Now, the meteors from the Smallville shower have mutagenic properties. We've already witnessed many ordinary humans developing extraordinary powers due to them, and one clone that my father manufactured that has at least one of Clark's abilities. Imagine what my father might do with pack DNA!" "Yes, I see," Marina looked both horrified and thoughtful, "What can we do?" "We've written down every facility that we found in my father's files. Before he has a chance to move them, or increase security, we need to hit them all at the same time," Lex explained. Lucius stepped forward with an evil grin on his face, "Can we help out, Mom? Sounds like fun?" Marina smirked and glanced at her sister, raising an eyebrow. Selene smiled and nodded. "It will be a pleasure," Marina said with a nod, "What's the plan?" Lex grinned and nodded at Clark. @>*~ While Lex went through the plans with the pack, Clark speeded round to the labs to scan them and make notes on general layout and number of guards. They had to hit that night or lose their chance. The pack had split into pairs. Mostly mated pairs, one team to take out each lab. Every attack would be coordinated to begin at the same time, starting by setting off the alarms in the hopes of clearing the buildings before blowing them up. Wolfbreed had enough speed that they could set bombs throughout each facility and get out before the timers went off. The timing would be tricky. They had to make sure the emergency services didn't get there before the bombs had done their job and make sure as many people as possible were safe. That meant each pair would have to start setting bombs as soon as the alarms went off, despite the security risk. While Clark was out, Lex touched on the one subject he knew his lover would balk at. "Now then, there may well be live experimental subjects at these facilities, and some may even appear to be children." Lex sighed, grimacing regretfully, "They may be children now, but from what we've seen, they are dangerous and without conscience. We can't allow them to survive." Staring at his family seriously, Lex made his final statement. "I truly believe the entire world will be in danger if we don't stop my father now." Marina patted his arm gently. "We understand, Lex. We may not all have been bigoted like my father, but the thought of Wolfbreed heritage being corrupted like that, is more than any of us can take," she said quietly, "We're all behind you." The pack howled in agreement and Lex relaxed. In the back of his mind, he knew Clark was on his way. They were really going to do this! @>*~ Clark raced straight to the back of the house and to his lover's side, pulling Lex straight into his arms. Lex hugged him tightly. "Okay?" he asked. "Yeah," Clark sighed. He felt a little apprehensive and scared, but he also had a sense of achievement. They were doing something important for the future of the world. In a strange way, he was making a start on his biological father's initial decree that he look after the people on this planet. Lex felt Clark's tiny shiver and leaned back to look into sad, green eyes. "It's not too late to stop this, Clark." Shaking his head, Clark smiled tremulously. "We have to do this, Lex. As long as we have each other, we'll get through this just fine." Gently cupping Clark's cheek, Lex leaned up and kissed him, running his tongue over full lips before slipping between them. Clark groaned quietly and sucked on Lex's hot tongue, running his own tongue over and under it. We should stop, Lex thought as he pressed deeper. Mmm hmm, Clark agreed, tugging on Lex's ass to pull him as close as possible. "Um, Lex? Clark?" Marina cleared her throat loudly. "Really sappy," Lucius muttered with a grin. Lex pulled back reluctantly and mock growled at his cousin. Lucius just snorted. "Yes, anyway," Lex shifted, but kept a tight hold on his lover for the moment. "Clark's going to pass you a basic map and the address of the facility you are to hit, then we can get on our way. Remember, coordinate the timing and let Marina know when you're finished." "What will you be doing, Lex?" Lucius asked quietly, looking curious. "Clark and I are returning to Smallville. There's at least one facility there and I want to check out the plant," Lex replied. Lucius nodded. "Good luck, cousin." "And to you, Lucius," Lex replied with a nod, "Marina, I will speak to you later." His aunt nodded and smiled. Clark followed Lex out of the house. "Do you want me to run us back to Smallville?" he asked. "Yes," Lex said with a nod, "We need to get there before the strikes start here." "Okay." Clark smiled and picked Lex up in his arms. "It'd be easier if I could fly, huh?" "I thought you were afraid of flying?" Lex asked with a soft smile. "Well, yeah," Clark admitted ruefully, "But that whole floating thing got me thinking. I probably will be able to fly, don't you think?" Lex nodded, "I expect so. But don't push it, love, you have enough to deal with. We'll deal with it, if and when it happens." "Okay," Clark replied, feeling oddly relieved that Lex would be there to support him if any more powers developed. Then he took off at top speed. He knew Lex could take the G-force of full speed now he was Wolfbreed. "Fuck me!" Lex exclaimed when they came to a stop just outside Smallville a couple of minutes later. Clark grinned. "Can I?" he asked. "Huh?" Lex blinked in confusion. "Oh," he realised what he'd just said and smiled, "Definitely... once this is over with." He sighed and stroked Clark's cheek, "Come on, love." Clark nodded seriously, despite the shiver Lex's positive response sent through him. "Level three?" he asked. "Level three," Lex said with a grim nod. "It's so obvious, too obvious," he sighed, "And right under my nose." Lex looked up at his lover. "I can't say I've actually been down there since Earl." Clark pulled a face and stroked the back of Lex's head where Earl had hit him. "I wish you hadn't gone down there," he sighed. "Hey," Lex pouted, "I had to try and save you, you know. I didn't know you were superpowered then, did I?" "No." Clark grimaced regretfully. That had only been one of the times his secrets had put Lex in danger. "No guilt-tripping," Lex said firmly, "We're a long way past secrets and recriminations." Solemnly, Clark nodded. He shifted Lex in his arms and sped off for the plant.