Starts at the end of Forever.

Chloe frowned as she flexed her fingers. "So the bones were completely unsalvageable?"

Hank nodded sadly. "Unfortunately, it seems Brendan's abilities negated your healing factor in the complex tissue. It is lucky that the skin provided some protection from leaving them uncovered. I was worried the skin would not completely heal the correct way."

Chloe sighed. She focused and inch long claws extended from each of her fingertips. She glanced at Logan and told him, "If I ever complain for not having fingers, feel free to remind me of what you went through."

Logan shrugged, "It isn't pleasant is it?"

She shook her head in agreement. She retracted the fingers claws. She extended her thumbs and transparent green claws came out. She looked at Hank and asked seriously, "Tell me why you decided to put these in as well."

Hank swallowed and replied nervously, "We all agree that Clark is our friend and we all trust him." Chloe stared at him unconvinced. Hank sighed, "As much as I trust him, the threat posed by red kryptonite is too great to overlook. I felt that some insurance if another incident occurred would best be handled by you."

Chloe looked at him upset, "So you decide I would be the most appropriate choice to potentially kill him?"

Hank lowered his heads in shame and frustration. Logan spoke up, "Kid, we don't want Clark to die, but what happens the next time he puts on a school ring?"

"We destroyed all of them."

"Okay, what if he wanders across a chunk of the stuff in Smallville?"

Chloe raised her voice in anger, "We could have dealt with that when the time came."

Logan shot back, "Thanks to Hank's plan, we have a plan set up already."

She ground her teeth and turned away in frustration. Hank quietly told her, "The metal in the thumb bones are lined with lead in order to protect Clark. You won't need to worry about hurting him by mistake."

Chloe scowled and coldly told him, "That is good planning. Real good work." She turned and left the infirmary. Hank sighed in remorse as she stormed out.

Logan assured, "She is just upset, Doc. She'll be fine. That girl can't stay mad for long."

Hank glanced at him and said, "I hope she can forgive me in time."

Two weeks later.

Chloe and Lana stood looking at the hallway display and frowned while Clark and Evan sat on a nearby bench looking bored. Lana looked hesitant and commented, "This is the only color they have for the gowns? It doesn't look very appealing."

Chloe nodded troubled, "Yep. This is the color."

Lana shook her head in disbelief. "Why didn't they just stick with yellow? That's what they've used for the last 5 years. What made them decide to change it now? I had the perfect shoes to match the yellow."

Chloe shrugged. Evan rolled his eyes and spoke up, "What does it matter? That is what they picked out this year. I don't see what difference it makes. Clark and I already have our outfits and you don't see us complaining."

The two girls just gazed at him and directed their attention back to the display. Evan sighed, "I don't see what the big deal is. I know it only happens once but just accept what you get. I should know." He lowered his voice for Chloe and Clark only, "I'm probably the first and only three month old who is graduating High School."

Chloe corrected, "It's a GED. You technically won't graduate since you never went to Smallville High."

Evan shrugged, "I wish I could get to walk down with the three of you, so I am considering it to be graduating."

Lana smiled, "After the graduation, we will have our own ceremony where you will called up for your diploma. How does that sound?"

Evan nodded, "Yeah, I think that would be fun."

Lana smiled and commented, "We only have a few hours left as seniors. Chloe, you owe me 45 dollars."

Clark and Evan looked confused while Chloe replied, "Not so fast, Ms. Lang. The bet was to make it past graduation day alive. We still have till tomorrow night."

Clark admonished, "That is a very disturbing idea. I can't believe you two."

Chloe rolled her eyes and whispered, "Come on, Clark. We have the man of steel and a mutant feline patrolling the town. We're just playing around."

Clark stood and hugged Chloe. "We don't need to worry about meteor freaks or mutants today. We just need to worry about finding Lana a new pair of shoes for graduation." Everyone busted up laughing at that. "We probably should start now, we may be a while." Lana mockingly shot him a hurt look and scolded him.

Clark excused himself, "I have to go finish the chores on the farm; I will see you tomorrow tonight at the ceremony." He looked around and sped away. After getting home, Clark finished the chores at a normal rate and walked up the house around 10pm. He lay down on the couch and went to sleep.

Lana walked into her apartment and set her purse on the counter. She went to check her messages when she heard Genevieve's voice behind her. "Ms. Lang, I salute you for leading my son along for as long as you have. He normally is so strong minded, except when it comes to you."

Lana swallowed and faced her. "What do you want, Mrs. Teague?"

"The element."

Confused, she replied, "I don't have the element." She stopped as the older woman suddenly revealed a pistol.

"Don't toy with me, Ms. Lang. I know Lex has given you the element; now I want you to give it to me."

Lana swallowed and repeated, "I don't have the element."

Genevieve eyed her closely. "But you know where it is, don't you?"

Lana glanced away and Genevieve smiled. She walked forward and told her, "You're going to take me to it."

Lana looked at her in fear, "I don't know where it is."

The older woman scowled and stalked over to Lana. "Stop lying. You are not good at it."

She runs toward the door but Genevieve grabs her hair, stopping her. They struggle against each other as Genevieve knocks Lana into a lamp which topples to the ground. Then she pushes Lana in the other direction where Lana falls down, pushing over a tray.

Lana quickly gets back onto her feet and Genevieve grabs her by the shoulders, violently slamming her against the shelves on the wall. Lana punches Genevieve across the face, but Genevieve doesn't release her grip. They both fall to the floor with Genevieve above Lana. She wraps her fingers tightly around Lana's throat and chokes her.

Lana's grunts are silenced as her airway is cut off and she is powerless to defend herself. Then her eyes suddenly flash a brilliant purple. The sadistic smile on Genevieve's face fades when she sees the color in Lana's eyes, and Lana grabs Genevieve's arms roughly, pushing Genevieve onto the ground and kneeling over her. Genevieve gasps, "Isobel."

Isobel looked to Genevieve's purse and reached out. An element flies into her hand and she grips it with both hands, holding it above her head with the point facing downward. Then she slams it down into Genevieve's chest, stabbing her through the heart. Genevieve gasps. There is a small burst of bluish-white light that comes from the stone as blood begins to trickle down Genevieve's jacket. The element flies from her grip and imbeds itself in the hallway wall. A bright white light washes over Lana as a wind blows her hair back from her face and she closes her eyes, breathing heavily and smiling. The tattoo on her back is exposed as her shirt rides up. It glows purple and disappears. Genevieve's eyes close and she dies.

Lex stops as the element lands in the wall. He looks over and carefully pulls it out. He wipes it clean and pockets it. He then walks into the apartment.

As the spirit of Isobel has left Lana, she looks down at the blood covering her hands with fear. She backs away from Genevieve's body near tears, still holding her hands in front of her. Then she turns to the door and sees that Lex has entered. He is still dirty and disheveled from his adventure in the woods and he stares at Lana wordlessly. She stares back at him, trembling

Inside, Clark is asleep on the couch. Dim blue and red light flashes on his face and wakes him up. He sits up on the couch and the television turns on behind him, showing static. The lights flicker as well as a fire starts itself in the fire place and the hands on the grandfather clock spin wildly. The radio turns itself on and the dial turns back and forth, causing an unintelligible din of static and fragments of spoken words.

Shelby barks anxiously and runs to the front door. He goes up on his hind legs and scratches at the door. Clark gets up from the couch slowly and goes to the door. He opens it and a blinding white light fills the house from outside. Shelby runs out the door and down the stairs, barking into the sky where the colored light is shining down. Clark follows the dog down the stairs and also looks into the sky where in the distance he can see huge layers of misty colors ebbing and flowing in front of the stars.

Clark doesn't seem particularly worried, but Shelby continues to bark frantically. The dog finally runs back into the house as Clark continues to look at the light. Within a few seconds, all of the light waves converge into one bright white ball that crashes toward Clark

Clark bolted upright and gasped for air. He looked in front of him and saw his parents looking at him worried.

Martha tries to calm him, "Clark! It's okay; it's just a bad dream."

Jonathan told him, "You scared the daylights out of us yelling like that."

"What?"

Martha stays, "You kept yelling "It's coming!" over and over." Clark is sweating and he looks toward the window fearfully.

A large meteor is floating through space and suddenly breaks into thousands of tiny pieces which are headed straight for Earth.

Countdown: 14:20:01.78 to 14:19:56.83

In Lex's study, Lana is standing over a silver basin full of water, compulsively trying to wash the blood off her hands. She is breathless and crying as she speaks to Lex.

"She was coming at me, it happened so quickly. I don't even remember stabbing her."

Lex walks to the basin with a pitcher of water. "Lana, I want you to take a deep breath and try to relax." Lex holds Lana's hands still as he pours the water over them.

"Lex, a woman is dead because of me. I killed her."

Lex tells her calmly, "No, no. You had no choice. You did what anyone would do if their life was at stake." Lex gives Lana a towel to dry her hands and leads her to the couch. They sit down.

"I have to tell Jason. She was his mother."

"I'll deal with Jason."

Panicked, she stands and shouts, "Lex, there's a body in my apartment. I have to go the police. I have to tell them what happened."

"Lana, I'm not sure that's such a wise idea. Genevieve Teague was a powerful woman, married to an extremely powerful lawyer. Even though it's clearly self defense, Edward Teague is gonna make sure the jury sees otherwise. And don't worry; I've taken care of the body."

She looks confused, "What's gonna happen to me? I'm gonna go to prison."

"No. I've retained one of the best defense attorneys in the country. And once he arrives from New York, we'll go to the authorities."

"Ok. Thank you."

Lex embraces Lana and takes a deep breath. "You have to trust me. Until the lawyer arrives, I want you to stay here and talk to no one." Lana doesn't respond. Lex kindly looks at her and smiles consolingly. He leaves and pulls out the partially bloody element. He smirks and walks out.

Clark, Martha, and Jonathan are in the kitchen drinking coffee.

"I can't help but feel this is some kind of warning."

Martha assures him, "Clark, it was nothing but a bad dream."

Jonathan says, "You used to have nightmares all the time when you were little, remember?"

"This time is different. It felt so real. And if it is a warning I need to do something."

"Yeah, what you need to do is you need to get some shut-eye so that you're not half asleep tomorrow when they hand you that diploma."

"Your dad's right. Don't let a nightmare spoil your high school graduation."

Lois comes down the stairs in her pajamas and bunny slippers. She scoffs, "Nightmare? So that's what all this commotion is about?"

Jonathan tells her, "Hello, Lois."

Lois says, "Clark, you know, if it makes you feel any better, I have them all the time. I had this one last week. Really scary. This, uh, guy wearing a red cape was flying me somewhere."

Clark consoles her with little sincerity, "Oh, that sounds horrible, Lois."

"Yeah. There's something I wanted to tell all you guys. I just didn't know when to, so I guess 2 in the morning is good a time as any."

Martha frowns, "What is it, Lois?"

"Oh, the general recruited me on a recon mission to track down my sister the drifter in Europe. So, we're headed for Heidelberg tomorrow."

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that."

Clark tries not to smile.

"Clark, I know how devastated you must be but if you could just keep your tears to a minimum, I'd appreciate it."

"I'll try."

"Thanks. Mr. and Mrs. Kent, I just wanted to say thanks for everything. You guys are like the mom and dad I've always wanted to have."

Jonathan and Martha smile. Jonathan says, "Lois, we want you to know that you are welcome back here any time."

Clark tries to speak, "Actually…"

Martha quickly interrupts, "We'll all miss you, Lois." Clark shuts his mouth and smiles politely, giving in.

"I'll miss you all, too."

Shelby stands up on his hind legs and rests his front legs on the counter next to Lois, whining sadly.

"Him? Not so much."

The meteors continue their flight to Earth, several of them crashing into the moon on the way causing huge explosions of gray dust.

Inside, a man is sitting in a control room reading a magazine. Sounds from the radars get his attention and he puts down the magazine to look. On the radar screen he sees the meteors coming toward Earth.

"Sir, you had better take a look at the right ascension."

Another man comes over to look at the screen. "How long has there been activity?"

"There was nothing there 10 seconds ago. It just came out of nowhere."

"My God. It's headed straight for Earth."

Countdown 09:18:48.99 to 09:18.45.04

In the loft, Clark looks at the mirror in frustration tying his tie for graduation. Lois smirks at him as she climbs the stairs to the loft.

"I realize hand-eye coordination isn't one of your strong suits. Here, let me help you with that."

Lois takes the tie away from him and puts it around her own neck to tie it for him.

"Lois, I'm not sure what I'm gonna do without you."

"Ah, come on, Clark, your future is laid out right in front of you. You're gonna go to community college, major in agriculture, probably minor in law enforcement. And then you and Chloe are gonna have a nice little church wedding."

"Excuse me?"

"It's written in the stars and you know it. It's only a matter of time before you join the bowling league, take over the family farm, and then, well, you and Chloe can bring little Clark junior into the world."

"I think you're hallucinating."

"No. Hallucinating would be imagining Clark Kent going off to the big city to make his mark in the world. I'm just being realistic."

Lois finishes tying the tie and slips it off her neck. She puts it around Clark's neck and roughly tightens it, causing Clark to gasp.

"Lois, what are your big plans after Europe? You gonna go back to school? Maybe actually stay a little while?"

"I have a feeling that if I'm gonna get an education, it's gonna be in the real world." She sits on the couch. "You know, I took this career test in some magazine. It said that my perfect job would be a radio disc jockey."

"That makes sense. You talk enough. There won't be any dead air."

Lois gives him a mild glare, "You mock me now Smallville, but you just wait and see."

"Journalism. You ever thought about that? You wrote some half decent articles in your short lived career at the Torch."

"Nah, kill me first. Even if I could spell, the last thing I'd wanna do is spend my time in a newsroom. With my luck I'd probably end up across the desk from the most bumbling reporter on the masthead."

Clark finishes adjusting his tie. It is crooked. Lois hides a smile, "You know what? You actually look handsome for a change."

"I'll take that as a compliment."

Lois stands up and goes to fix the tie. "Look, I know we've had our disagreements in the past. And I will be the first to admit that I've made it my own little hobby to bust your chops."

"I'm used to it. Besides, I know I haven't been the most gracious host."

"Look, I just want you to know, Clark, that when I'm sitting in the audience today at your graduation and you stand up on that stage in front of all those people, I'm gonna be looking up at you and thinking one thing."

He looks at her worried, "What's that?"

"Please, God, don't let him trip." She punches him in the chest and leaves. "See you." Clark laughs, shaking his head.

A small stage is set up on the grass outside Smallville High where the principal talks into a microphone, reading off the names of the graduates. The families of the students are seated in three blocks of chairs in front of the stage. The graduates all stand together in red and yellow caps and gowns and they wait for their names to be called. As the principal reads each name, a graduate walks across the stage and takes a diploma. The audience cheers.

The principal announces, "Darren Cooper. Caroline Creese. Cody Davis. Erica Feldman. Lauren Feldman."

Clark and Chloe stand next to each other in the line and they walk slowly toward the stage.

Clark leans over to Chloe, "Did you see Lana yet?"

Chloe looks unsure, "Still no sign. I'm starting to get worried. Lana's never so much as had a tardy. She's not gonna miss her high school graduation."

He nervously comments, "She'll be here." They part ways at the head of the line to walk to opposite ends of the stage.

The principal continues, "Michael Hall. Holly Harold. Tanya Hart. Kate Horton. Michael Hoover. Hannah Jacobs. Michelle Jewel."

Clark and Chloe get to the stage as Martha and Jonathan watch from the audience. Lois and Evan are seated with them. Martha excitedly says, "Oh, there's Clark."

"Clark Kent." Jonathan, Martha, Evan, and Lois stand up and cheer. Lois puts her fingers in her mouth and whistles loudly as Jonathan snaps a picture. Clark smiles as he takes his diploma and walks across the stage.

"Lana Lang."

Clark's smile fades at the mention of Lana's name. The principal turns around and says something quietly to the man giving out diplomas. The man shakes his head and the principal comes back to the microphone.

They repeat, "Lana Lang."

Martha looks at Jonathan and Lois questioningly and Chloe and Clark exchange a worried glance. Chloe tilts her head and glances away to the street. After several seconds, a siren can be heard approaching as large military trucks drive up toward the school. A man in one of the trucks speaks through a megaphone as the trucks drive onto the grass. Other men jump out of the trucks wearing helmets and carrying guns.

The man announces into the megaphone, "Attention! Remain calm! By order of the Federal Emergency Decree: All non-essential personnel should evacuate the area within a 50 mile radius. In approximately 3 hours, a meteor shower is predicted to hit Smallville."

Martha covers her mouth in shock, "Oh, my God. Not again." The audience stands up and starts to run away. The graduates leave too.

The man announces, "Please remain calm. There's no need to panic. Please proceed to your home and carry only necessary items." Clark takes off his cap and gown and steps off the stage. Chloe runs to him worriedly and they walk together.

She whispered, "Hey, Clark! Can you believe it? Twice in 16 years. I mean, this is crazy! Smallville's gotta have some sort of extraterrestrial bull's eye on it!"

He nods, "I wonder if this is what that dream was about?"

She repeats, "What dream?"

"Last night I had a strange dream where I saw a bright light in the sky. It came right at me."

She nervously asks, "Do you think Jor-El is responsible for this?"

"I wouldn't put it past him. Whatever is happening, we don't much time, we need to find Lana. You go check her apartment and I'll go talk to Jor-El."

Lois walks up to them. All three of them walk to Chloe's car in the parking lot. Clark asks Chloe, "You and Lois get ready to leave town. Stop by the Talon and see if you find anything to indicate if Lana is in any trouble."

Lois objects, "Look, I'm sure she's already out of town. They've evacuated half of the county. They probably saw her running in late and told her to leave town."

Clark nods and they arrive at the car.

"Now listen to me, Smallville, if there's one thing that the General has taught me is that you cannot panic in times of crisis. Do you hear me? Okay, whatever happens, you have to stay calm. You cannot panic."

"Lois…"

She starts to panic, "Because if you lose your cool…"

Chloe and Clark both shout, "Lois!"

"What?"

Chloe tells her, "You're panicking."

She glares and says, "Fine." Lois and Chloe get in the car and Clark looks around at all the panicked people running away.

Chloe pulls up to the Talon and tells Lois, "Wait right here. I'm going to see if Lana let a note or anything." She gets out of the car and runs inside. She walks up the stairs and slows as she gets closer to the apartment. She narrows her eyes in confusion and cautiously goes inside. She sniffs and gets a look of queasiness. She kneels and put her face closer to the floor. She opens her mouth in shock and stands up quickly. She sniffs some more and sighs. "Lex was here recently with Genevieve. How nice of him to clean up his mess."

She looked around the room more and saw the damaged wall. She looked through the opening and walked into the hall. She saw the hole caused from the stone and sniffed the opening. She exhaled in frustration, "Lex has one of the stones. Clark is not going to like this." She turns and leaves the Talon.

Clark opens a box in the loft and pulls out the octagonal spaceship key. He looks at it for a moment, then turns to go. Lex is standing there. Clark hides the key behind his back. He asks casually, "Lex, what are you doing here?"

"I wanted to offer to you and your parents' safe passage out of here in the LuthorCorp jet. The roads will be pretty ugly soon."

"Thanks, but I think we'll be okay." Clark sticks the key in his pocket and shifts his eyes nervously.

"Clark, why take the risk? The first meteor shower caused me irrevocable damage. Trust me, you don't want to be near here when the next one hits."

"Thanks, Lex, but I think my dad's gonna want to pack up the truck with as much as we can take."

"I understand. Some things simply can't be replaced." Lex walks toward the window and looks up at the sky. He pauses and says, "Clark, my scientists have identified what seems to be an inner chamber inside the cave wall."

Clark's eyes widen, but he remains calm. He swallows and says, "Really?"

"I was wondering if your research into the cave might have turned up anything similar."

"No. Um, but Lex, why are you so interested in the caves when there's a natural disaster headed our way?"

"Clark, if anything in this town is irreplaceable it's those caves." Clark nods in agreement. "They've been around for thousands of years and they can very well be destroyed in the next 24…"

He interrupts, "Well, let's hope they're not. I really need to help my parents. Good luck, Lex."

"Thanks, Clark, but I don't believe in luck. It's our wits and our fortitude to keep us safe. And I'm sure you have more than enough of both. Stay safe."

Countdown 02:21:03.83 to 02:20:58.97

Clark enters the inner chamber of the Kawatche cave. He looks down at the stone altar and speaks to the emptiness of the chamber.

"You're my father. Talk to me."

He puts the octagonal key into a slot in the altar. "Tell me what you've done!" There is a flash of light and Clark is surrounded by swirling blue energy. Jor-El's voice fills the cave.

It was you who brought this upon yourself, Kal-El.

"What did I do?"

I sent you here to unite the three elements.

"The stones? They have nothing to do with me!"

But they do, Kal-El. For the knowledge of the universe is meant for you only. Yet you chose to deny your heritage. Today, you will witness the consequences.

"Then you sent the meteor shower?"

I have done nothing, Kal-El. Human blood has stained one of the elements and awakened a great danger from the darkness of space.

"What can I do to stop it?"

There is nothing you can do to prevent what is already in motion. But the meteor shower is just the beginning, Kal-El. I warned you that the elements could not fall into the hands of a human. The three must become one. It is the only way to save Earth from total annihilation

"I don't know where the last one! I don't have time to find it!"

If you don't unite them at once, you, my son, will be seared by a fire from the sky even you can't survive. The future of mankind rests in your hands, Kal-El.

"Please... help me! I can't do this alone!" The light fades and Clark is back in the caves. He grits his teeth in anger and speeds out.

Countdown: 0:45:10.83 to 0:45:06.87

Shelby runs out the front door of the Kent home and down the stairs toward the street closely followed by Martha who is holding a folded yellow blanket. They rush toward the truck parked in the street. The back of the truck is overflowing with packed items that Jonathan is securing with a rope.

Martha exclaims, "I can't believe I almost forgot this!"

"That's great, sweetheart. I almost have the truck all loaded up."

"Great. Shelby, load up." Martha points to the open door of the truck, signaling Shelby to jump in just as Clark super speeds up to them.

Jonathan looks gratefully at him, "Clark, great. Would you help me secure the truck?"

He nervously tells them, "You're gonna have to go without me.'

Martha fearfully asks, "What?"

"Do I have to remind you, Clark, that the last time we had a meteor shower, it was full of kryptonite?"

"If the same happens today it could kill you. You have to come with us."

"I spoke to Jor-El. He told me I have to find the other stone right now, and unite them with the ones in the cave."

Martha shakes her head forcefully, "NO! You're my son. You're not gonna go on some kind of suicide mission.

"Clark, you might be stronger than steel, but you're not invincible."

"I know, Dad. But I'm the only one who can do this."

Jonathan and Martha look at each other then back to Clark. He nods reluctantly, "All right. But I want you to listen to me right now. All the years that your mother and I spent raising you from that wide-eyed toddler running around on this farm to the man who is standing in front of me right now was for this moment." Martha has tears in her eyes. Jonathan finishes, "You do this, son. You make us proud."

Clark nods. He and Jonathan hug. When they pull away from each other, Martha and Clark share a long heartbroken look. Finally Martha comes forward and hugs him. Then she touches his face and turns away toward the truck. Clark walks away toward the barn.

Martha whispers to Jonathan, "Those meteors can kill him, Jonathan."

"I know that, sweetheart. But if we have faith in our son, then we can't let that faith waver now." Martha starts to cry and Jonathan holds her close.

Clark walks into the barn and sees Lana sitting nervously on the stairs. He comments, "We thought you already evacuated."

She turns to him fearfully. Clark asks worried, "Are you okay?"

"I'm scared."

"Lana, I know this meteor shower must bring up some painful memories for you. But this time is different. We have warning and we'll be safe."

"No, I'm not so sure. Clark, I don't know what's going to happen to me. I want you to know how grateful I am that you and Chloe trusted me with your secrets. I hope I can trust one to you."

He nods and looks at her shirt and notices the red stain near her wrist. He asks confused, "Is that blood?"

She looked in his eyes and swallowed, "Remember all those times that I asked you for an explanation, but you said you couldn't me one? That I had to trust you? Well, this time I need you to trust me."

He nods and waits patiently. She continues, "After I got home from shopping yesterday, Genevieve was in my apartment." She pauses and Clark looks on with concern. "She knew about the stones of Power, Clark, and she thought I had one. We started fighting and I must have blacked out for a minute." She choked back a fearful sob, "When I came to, I was sitting over her body."

Clark stares at her, stunned. "Well, it sounds like you were protecting yourself."

Lana shook her head and whispered fiercely, "Whatever it was, a woman is dead because of me."

Clark wants to reassure her but advises her, "Lana, my parents are about to leave right now. Go with them. You'll be safe."

She gets hysterical, "I can't."

"You have to."

"Clark, I need you to know... that whatever happens, I will never forget you."

"Lana, you're talking like we never gonna see each other again."

She walks to him and hugs him tightly. "I am so glad I have you as a friend." She kisses him on the cheek and backs away.

"I am, too." Lana tells him goodbye and leaves. Clark stares after her in shock and worry.

Countdown: 00:19:14.87 to 00:19:10.91

Lana is in Lex's study talking on her cell phone. "Chloe, even though you won't hear from me for a while, I want you to know that I'm okay."

Lex walks up behind her and reaches around to hang up the phone. "I thought we'd agreed you wouldn't talk to anyone."

"I have to let my friends know that I'm all right."

"Lana, I understand you not wanting them to worry, but you have to trust me." Lex walks toward his bookshelf. He hits a hidden button on the shelf and a panel opens.

Lana looks curious and asks, "What are you doing?"

He evades the question, "A chopper is being fueled to evacuate you to Metropolis where you'll stay at a hotel until your lawyer arrives. It's probably best not to travel with a murder weapon."

Lana gapes at him in confusion, "What murder weapon? Lex, I told you, I didn't kill her intentionally. Where did you find it?"

"It was in the hallway outside your apartment. It was embedded in the wall." He held it up and Lana paled. Lex had the stone that Clark needed. Lex turned to the vault and placed it on the counter. "I prepared a helicopter to…" As he talks, Lana discreetly texts Clark: Stone at Mansion.

Martha, Jonathan, and Shelby drive away from the Kent farm in the truck. As they get to the street, they almost collide with another truck that is coming towards them, and both trucks come to a stop. Jason is driving the other truck. He steps out weakly. His clothes are covered in dirt and his face is caked with dried blood. Concerned, Jonathan gets out of his truck quickly and asks, "Jason?"

Martha and Shelby get out of the truck. Martha pales in fear as Jason pulls out and cocks a shotgun, pointing it at the three. Martha gasps as Shelby growls protectively.

She looks at the dog and says, "Shelby, no."

He angrily tells them, "I'm having what you'd call a rough day."

Jonathan tries to talk, "W-Why don't you just calm down, son?"

Jason shouts, "Where is Clark?"

Martha and Jonathan are silent for a brief moment. He answers, "He's not here. Look, why don't you put down the shotgun, and we'll talk about it?" Irritated, Jason fires a bullet, shattering the windshield of the Kent's' truck. Everyone jumps in shock and Martha shrieks.

Jason demands, "Tell me where he is!" Shelby barks, frightened. Jonathan and Martha exchange another worried look and Jason blinks at them wearily.

Countdown: 00:14:24.49 to 00:14:20.54

Clark ran toward the caves and stopped when his phone beeped. He checked the message and noticed a text from Lana. It read: Stone at Mansion. He frowned and turned around and sped to the mansion.

He stopped in the study and quickly X-rayed the room. He noticed the bookshelf was lined with lead and walked to the shelf. He pried the door off and tossed it aside. He sees the stone and moves to pick it up. Several relics in the room light up with green kryptonite and he gasps. He starts losing his balance and quickly grabs the stone before he collapses to the ground.

Countdown: 00:01:26.04 to 00:01:22.08

Jason reaches for the shotgun and Martha runs over to him, stomping on his hand with her foot. Jason grabs her leg and trips her. She falls to the floor next to Jason and kicks him in the face. Jason then grabs the shotgun and gets to his knees, pressing the gun down over Martha's neck, choking her.

"Martha!"

Jonathan's hands are tied together behind him. He gets them under his legs and in front of him so that he can stand up. He grabs Jason away from Martha. Jason stands up and knocks Jonathan in the chest with the butt of the gun, accidentally firing another bullet into the ceiling. Jonathan punches Jason in the face, and Jason circles around to the counter, landing against it. Then Jonathan comes up behind him and wraps his hand bindings around Jason's throat in an attempt to choke him.

Jason grabs a glass bottle from the counter and shatters it over Jonathan's head. Martha screams as Jonathan backs away, and Jason whips Jonathan across the face with the gun, sending him to the floor. He lands next to Martha who clings to him as Jason points the gun at them both, cocking it He suddenly hears a roaring noise coming above the house. He looks up and swallows. The last thing he sees is the ceiling rushing at him.

Chloe ran into the Luthor study. She glanced around nervously and her stomach jumped in her throat. Clark was collapsed on the floor, bathed in a green glow from a secret room. She ran forward and grabbed his arm and pulled him away from the kryptonite. The glow died and he quickly woke up. He glanced at her and smiled weakly in thanks. He stood up and held out his hand, revealing the stone. She glanced up in relief and confusion. "Is that the last one? Why is there blood on it?" She sniffed and grew more confused, "That's Genevieve's blood."

Clark swallowed nervously and quickly nodded. "I'll tell you later. Right now, let's get to the caves. We'll unite the stones and get this quest over with." They started toward the door and Chloe stopped them.

She sniffed and whispered, "Clark, Lex is coming. Get the stone to the caves. I'll keep him busy and meet up with you later." Clark nodded and speed away out of the house. Chloe exhaled and prepared for Lex's blowup.

She faced the secret room and pretended to look shocked. She heard the door open and turned to face it. She saw Lex look at the broken door. He quickly ran over and noticed Chloe. She spoke up while he ran past her into the room, "Lex, I was looking for Lana, I got a call…"

"She's already left. What happened?"

She answered, "I don't know, I came in and saw this."

They walked to the entrance and Chloe sensed Lex's heart rate and anger swiftly rise. "You more than you're telling me, Chloe. Who did this?"

Chloe rolled her eyes and replied, "I just wanted to find Lana."

She flinched as he pounded the wall in anger. "You always seem to let your curiosity get the best of you. Now it's put you on dangerously thin ice." He spun around and gripped her arms tightly. She pretended to wince at the pain. "Now tell me where the element is!"

She answered in a scared voice, "Lex, I swear I don't know what happened." He scoffed and jerked away irritated. Chloe attempted to reason, "Lex, a meteor shower is on its way here, we have to go."

He demanded, "I'm going to find the stone even I have brave the meteors to get it." He stalked over and grabbed her arm forcefully. "And you're coming with me."

He pulled her along and she denied, "I don't know what you talking about."

Lana looks out the window wide-eyed. The helicopter rattles in all the turbulence as meteors fall all around them. One of the meteors hits the tail of the helicopter, and they go into a sharp spin as they plummet to the ground. The last thing she sees is the glass window of the helicopter shattering as it hits the ground

Lois drives Chloe's car out of Smallville. She pulls over on the side of the road and gets out of the car, running up a hill nearby to look at the city. She stumbles to her knees at the top of the hill and looks around with tears in her eyes. Before her, Smallville is in ruins. Fires burn everywhere as trails of smoke still linger in the air.

Lana slowly regained consciousness. She blinks and carefully. She looks up and pales at seeing the helicopter a few yards away. She tries to sit up and screams in agony. She glances down and notices shards of kryptonite in her stomach and right leg. She winces in pain as she carefully removes the rocks. She groans as she drags herself away from the smoking helicopter. Not far off, she sees a large mound of dirt in the middle of the smoking field and she crawls painfully toward it.

When she gets to the mound, she crawls up the side and looks over the edge. She sees that it is actually a crater of dirt in the center of which is an enormous black spaceship. Lana's mouth hangs open as she looks at it. "It can't be." Then a crack of white light shines on her face and begins to grow as the spaceship opens.

Clark walked into the stone room. He heard Chloe arguing with Lex about knowing more than she would tell him. He x-rayed to watch them and saw Chloe become annoyed and shove Lex into a wall, quickly knocking him out. Chloe walked up to him in the cave and said, "We are going to have a lot of covering to do once this is over, Clark. I don't think Lex will give up easily."

Clark sighed and nodded, "Well we do a couple telepathic friends. Maybe one of them can wipe his memory." She nodded and looked at the stone in Clark's hand.

She looked eagerly at him and excitedly asked, "Are you going to complete it and see what happens?"

He nodded seriously and said, "I was hoping you would be here."

He put the stone in place and watched as the symbols began to glow red, blue and yellow. The cracks lit up with a white glow and the stones formed one shield shaped light blue diamond. They watched in awe as the diamond slowly rose and stopped about shoulder height to Clark. He swallowed nervously and glanced at Chloe. She smiled and squeezed his hand in encouragement. He gave a small smile and said, "Let's see what happens." He reached out his other hand and grabbed the diamond. A bright light quickly enveloped them and the caves.

Both shouted aloud as an intense energy coursed through the small enclosure. It lasted for a few seconds and then an even more intense light flashed around them. They both gasped in relief as the light and energy quickly died down.

Chloe gasped as she appeared in another cave. She called out, "Clark?! Where are you? Where am I?" She looked around in desperation and walked around the cave. She stopped and focused on one of the walls. She narrowed her eyes and grew confused. The wall had kryptonian symbols bordering a large display of a DNA helix with highlighted genetic markers. Chloe spoke aloud, "That's mutated DNA." She looked across the wall and noticed a handprint sized indent in the rock. She bit her lip in thought and hesitantly placed her hand in the indentation. She squinted as a bright light blinded her.

Clark blinked and got his bearings. He glanced around in confusion and shock of not seeing Chloe. "Chloe!" He gave up and looked around. As far as the eye could see, he saw snow and ice covered ground. He sighed as he let go of the diamond and watched as it floated upward and the point positioned itself away from him. Clark was growing tired of all these puzzles, so he grabbed the stone and flung it as hard as he possibly could into the vast ice land. The diamond flew for a nearly a mile. Clark kept on an eye on where it went and watched it go straight down into the ice.