500/The Hustle and Bustle of the Planet

The Hustle and Bustle of the Planet
Date of Scene:	18 May 2017
Location:	Daily Planet, Metropolis
Synopsis:	Summary needed
Cast of Characters:	Lois Lane, Superman, 277

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Lois Lane has posed:
The Hustle and Bustle of the Planet is a constant thing. It could be the earliest of mornings or the latest of evenings, but still, somewhere within the Planet there would be some type of activity. The clack of keyboard, the kerchunk of a printer press, or even the ring of a cellphone. Some type of noise can be heard from within those hallowed halls.

Now it's mid-morning and the activity is nearly at its peak, especially in the main news room. That's where Lois is. She's at her desk, half-hunched over her computer and a small notebook that holds a variety of short-hand notes. Short-hand that's likely only decipherable by Lois.

With her attention split between notebook and computer screen, the black-haired reporter will grumble to herself for a nearly silent second. Then, suddenly, she'll call out, "How many c's in unassociated?" Her question is called out to those nearest her, uncaring who answers, just as long as /somebody/ does. "Two right?"

She believes it's two, but every time she types it out that damn red squiggle line appears. There are times that red squiggle line feels like her mortal enemy.

Truly.

Superman has posed:
"One c, two ss's" Clark replies smoothly. Because this is his life in the Planet, and Clark wouldnt have it any other way. A soft smile curls his lips, making him hunch down imto his own comouter to keep Lois feom seeing it. of coursen he cheats, looking over his glasses tonpeek through his comouter andbher comouter to see her reaction.

Lois Lane has posed:
Surprise will briefly flicker across Lois' features at who answered her half-shouted question.

She was so engrossed with that article that Lois wasn't even aware that Clark had arrived. Or was at his desk.

The article will be momentarily abandoned now by the reporter as she leans to the side, so she can peer around her computer and over to Clark. "Kent." She states, "When did you get here?" Is her first question, before a second question follows right after it, "And where have you been hiding? I swear, every time Perry called us into his office you went mysteriously missing."

Her expression is pointed, with one dark eyebrow raised upward, but a a smile does flirt at the corner of her lips, as she offers that greeting to her partner-in-crime.

"Pretty sure I've been pulling all your weight around here lately."

Superman has posed:
The surprise on Lois's face makes it so hars not to laugh. He smiles though, straightening up and pushing his expression toward that bewildered farmboy.

"Oh gee, Lois. Im really sorry. Ive just had some times come up. i really appreciate it thoigh. and... i gornhere about an hiur ago?"

Lois Lane has posed:
That raised eyebrow stays upward as she considers that bewildered farmboy expression upon Clark's face. A hand will now raise as she points at Clark, "Don't think I don't know what you're doing, Smallville. Deflection."

And while that might ominous to Clark, perhaps Lois' next words will ease any nerves that might have allowed him to feel. "You still owe me for all the assignments I covered without you; assignments we were supposed to cover together according to Perry." That finger will jab towards Clark a moment, but there's not too much heat held within that motion. "I think this means it's your turn to get lunch. And not pizza, we've already had that three times this week. If I see another pepperoni -" That last line more muttered to herself than for Clark's benefit.

Superman has posed:
Clark fights down the nervous swallow. Lois is so smart. how he keeps fooling her is a complete mystery. Relief floods him as Loisnsteers herself away from the dreaded realizationn and im responsen Clark presses his glasses further up the bridge of his nose.

"Sure, Lois. I's be happy to buy you lunch. How about Al's? Burgersn hot dogs...?" All the best american gut busting.... Clark knows he doesnt NEED to est, but some food just tastes so good!

Lois Lane has posed:
"Definitely burgers." She agrees, and with that declared, Lois will ease back to her computer.

There's a couple of clicks and clacks and her computer hums to life, saving the article she was working on. Once her computer is locked away from prying eyes, Lois will rise to her feet, a hand going for the small purse that holds the variety of things she needs while on the job. "And fries. You can't have burgers without fries. Let's go." She says and with a glance around the Planet's news room, Lois will stride to the elevators. A jab of a finger will press the down button and a glance over her shoulder will make certain Clark is keeping up.

Superman has posed:
This is their game. Always has been their game. She"ll agree to somethinf out of the bulmding and then turn to look like shesgoing to get sucked in by her writing and just as he's refocused and about to get restarted she's up and moving. He hurries so close his comouter and grab his hat and his coat and oh gosh she"s st rhe elevator alreayd! Clark hurries, nesrly smashes into the mail cart, but somehow magically trips at the last second that slows him down.

Ding! Elevator door opens.

Lois Lane has posed:
"Oh Clark." Lois says when she spies the near miss between mail cart and large farm-man-boy. Stepping inside, Lois will dutifully hold the door open for him, waiting for him to arrive before she allows the doors to slide closed. Once closed she'll push the ground floor button and with a lurch the elevator is speeding downward.

The silence will hang there for a few seconds before Lois says, "So, is everything really okay? Jimmy was worried about you." Which is probably the truth, Jimmy worries about everyone, but beneath that is Lois' own concern. Her role in their duality is the hard-nosed reporter, but beneath that edge Lois still considers Clark a friend.

And she too worries about friends.

Superman has posed:
Lookinh slightly winded, Clark smooths down his not runpled tie, sniling st Lois in thanks for holding the doors. He stands with her in the 'silence' listening to Korean radio talking about a missile test. His gaze 'unfocsues' as he listens in, doing his best to follow the conversation when Lois' voice cuts back in, and pulls him back to the here,now, Metropolis.

"Wha? ih. um... Yeah. Fine. um... Dad's been sick, and... Mom needed an extra hand. Ive just... been flying back and forth trying to help out...." all 100% true. Most just assume he's been using frequent flyer miles...

Lois Lane has posed:
"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that." She says, her expression turning concerned as Lois focuses on Clark now versus the descending floors. "Anything I can do to help?" She asks, that question of hers and automatic, but sincere offer from her. She's met Clark's parents at Christmas.

They're good people. Kind people.

It's at this point that the elevator goes *DING* and the duo are upon the ground floor of the Planet. Even that floor is quite busy as people walk to and fro in various stages of hurry. People are already trying to stream into their elevator and with a slight roll of her eyes, Lois will squeeze herself out of it. "Excuse us. Coming through." Comes her firm voice as she pushes against the tide of humanity that's trying to squeeze into the very small box.

Superman has posed:
"Thanks, Lois," Clark says, letting the worry actually filter through before he smiles gently.

"You've been amazing, actually. I'm not sure how I could have gotten through these past few weeks without there, covering for me. Lunch, really is the least I can do," he says. DING and the rush comes in. Hand on his hat, Clark lowers his head and follows close on Lois' heels. She's the bulldozer, but he can be the stop block so whatever ground she gains isn't lost.

Lois Lane has posed:
The two work in tandem, even if not all the parties are quite aware of each other's efforts, hint: it's Lois that's not aware. Not Clark.

It's only after the two survived that press of bodies and have finally made it outside that Lois will pause. She'll make sure Clark's at her side before she finally says, "Like I said, you owe me lunch. After that we'll call it even." And there's a second of silence, "Maybe." A quirk of a grin curls one corner of her mouth upward as she flashes that look to Clark.

"Come on let's get going before the crazy lunch crowds hit." She'll say, striking it down the sidewalk. Clearly the two are going to walk to the burger place. As the two begin the stroll towards the eatery, Lois will ask, "What've you been working on since you've been back?"

Superman has posed:
At Lois's side, Clark glacnes back at the throng for a moment before looking up at Lois. Yes, up, because he had hunched over lots. He straightens, not quite fully, and smiles sheepishly (cowishly since his family deals in bovine not sheep...?). He nods to the look. Lunch, dinner, he'll bring coffee and doughnuts for her as often as he can manage.

"I was looking into the new tech launch that Luthor announced not long ago. I missed the conference, but I've been reading some of the quotes and watching some of the amateur video that made its way on Twitterspace about it..." Clark replies as he walks easily (as easily at Class Nerd walks next to Queen of the Halls herself ever can) at Lois's side.

Lois Lane has posed:
A dark slender eyebrow inches upward at what Clark has to say. "So, what I'm hearing is nothing." States the reporter as the two snake their way down the sidewalk, "Because that's definitely old news." Really it's ancient news, but Lois edited the word ancient to old, just to be nicer.

"Well, you're lucky you're back here and have me." Lois continues with, as she side-eyes Clark, "Because one of the stories that Perry sent me on is turning into something more serious." Her head will tilt slightly to the side as she considers what she just said, "Or rather, the person featured in the article has led me into something larger." That's better, back to Clark, Lois will ask, "Have you heard of the superhero named Steel? Completely armored, has a large hammer .." She pauses then to see if Clark knows who she's speaking of.

Superman has posed:
Clark frowns (pouts?) lightly at Lois' assessment of his story. Yes, it's old news, but there's something... Maybe because it's Lex...? His thoughts are derailed by Lois's side-glance and head tilt. He clearly shoves thoughts of Luthor aside in favor of...

"Steel? No. Actually.. No, Ihaven't..."

Lois Lane has posed:
"I hadn't either. Not until I met him a few days ago." Lois begins, her gaze flicking between Clark and the area in front of them. It wouldn't be good to trip into someone while they walked.

She's not the clumsy one here.

"The First People's Bank opened a new branch not far from here. Steel stepped when some para-military thugs came in to lighten their vaults." If Clark was keeping an eye on the Planet's stories, he'd have seen that very story float across the front page a few days ago. The article would have described the group as well as the military gear they had; guns, flash bang grenades and even some concussive grenades. There was also a picture of Steel standing heroically with his hammer.

"But that's not the best part -" Because in Lois' book bank robberies are great, right, "When everything calmed down I went over to him to ask some questions. Eventually he revealed he was looking into another theft when he came across ours. Something tied to the Four Seas Gang."

Cheetara (277) has posed:
    '-OOOOK MY BABY!!!' Is the distant and faint cry, JUST before a pair of men on a Motorcycle, one having a wailing baby in his arms zoom right past Lois and Clark. A couple of seconds later, AND GAINING was a woman with amber colored hair.

Before the motorcycle can even reach the end of the block, the woman seems to summon a staff out of nowhere, and put it in the spokes of the motorcycle, flipping it end over end....sending the men, and the baby, flying.

The woman's priority seems to be the infant, as she seems to use that same speed she had before, to catch the infant, and return it to the now breathless mother striding up near Lois and Clark, muttering breathless and repeated 'Thank you's' to the woman.

Superman has posed:
Clark listens to all the information Lois is giving him, a frown creasing his face as she continues. That Lois has a 'best part' for bank robberies is just.. She's been in far too many. Clark wishes she were more cautious some times, but... that's part of what makes her her. He'd never want her to be anything- wait baby? What baby?

As the motorcycle zips by, Clark tenses, his face going from farmboy thoughtful to super ready in a heartbeat. He inhales, mind ready with an excuse to cut and run and duck into that alley so he can fly out again as Superman to save the day when... Cat..girl.... Really fast, with a staff, and...Clark is just standing there next to Lois, lips still parted, looking slightly dumbfounded (because damn that was impressively fast).

Lois Lane has posed:
"Apparently what they stole was a data chip, the -" And that's where her words end, as even her more mortal ears hears the wail of the mother. When the bikes appear on the scene with a crying baby, Lois blinks in surprise for a second.

That surprise then transitions to her features as the cat-girl makes her way on the scene. She'll watch the bike flip up and down and the Planet's reporter will mutter, "Definitely not something you see every day."

That, however, doesn't stop her to snap into action when the mother, the baby and the baby's savior suddenly appears near their position. As soon as the mother has her baby in her arms and all seems well, Lois' gaze will go from reunited family to Cheetara. "Hey!" Lois will say more to Cheetara than anyone else, "Who are you?"

Cheetara (277) has posed:
    The woman turns back towards the two bikers who are...clearly knocked out on the side walk. SOmeone was good enough to turn off, and take the keys, of the motorcycle.

It's only then that she realizes someone is talking to her. She turns towards Lois and tilts her head. Rolling her eyes, she reaches inside of her bodysuit to pick out a small device and place it in her ear, then shrink her staff to put it on her forearm.

"Excuse me?" The slightly feminine, yet machanical voice of an obvious translator device says to Lois....

Superman has posed:
Clark's head tilts at the completely unfamiliar alien language. He knows it's alien, but... it's not one in his data banks. WOw is this... sorry. No geeking out. There's reporting to.. oh, Lois has it. Okay, back to internally geeking out over the new language and the translator device. Nice. Clark steps with Lois, staying at her side as his gaze slides to the bikers and hte baby. Chin tilts down, hand comes up to pull his glasses down a wuarter inch so he can peek inside each, making sure they are all okay.

Lois Lane has posed:
Yup, leave it to Lois.

She's good at what she does, but then, so is Clark. Just in the other more heroic areas.

Already Lois is reaching for her smartphone and when it's in her hand she'll thumb the lock screen. "Who are you?" Lois will ask again, bringing the phone closer, even as her gaze catches that slight movement of Cheetara putting that translating device within her ear.

A brow will quirk upward at that, not to mention at the cat-woman's native language being translated to English. "What language are you speaking?"

Cheetara (277) has posed:
    "I am speaking Thunderan. Well, the primary language of the Thunderans." the translating device says. It's obvious she has to wait for the translation before she speaks in return to Lois. "I am Cheetara."

The bikers are fine, so is the child, except for the excitement. Cheetara's......barely winded. It's like that super speed run was a walk in the park for the cat woman. or, at least, that's what Clark can tell.....

Superman has posed:
Blue eyes blink once and Clark pushes his glasses back up the bridge of his nose. His attention back on Cheetara he glances her over (he is not checking her out, honest!), noting that she's not winded. It wouldn't have winded him either, but still.

"Thunderan," he muses softly, almost to himself.

Lois Lane has posed:
Lois unconsciously echoes Clark Kent as she too says, "Thunderan." Though she's not speaking softly to herself, no, that statement is more pointed and it's pointed toward Cheetara. "I can't say I've heard of it." But then, the cat woman is offering her name and Lois will say, "Lois Lane, reporter for The Daily Planet." Her head will tilt towards Clark now, as she adds, "Clark Kent, likewise a reporter for The Daily Planet."

Once introductions are out of the way, Lois will circle right back around to the most obvious question that's just begging to be asked. "I'm going to go out on a limb here and say you're not from around here, right?" Her voice carries the slightest hint of sardonic humor, as she can't help but feel the irony here.

This last week for Lois has been full of interviews with aliens and it seems her luck has yet to turn.

Cheetara (277) has posed:
    "If you mean from this planet, then no. I am not." Cheetara says softly. "Daily planet. Is that a new planet you report every day?" Clearly she doesn't know of a newspaper. Of course, other indicators that she's not from around here is the fact that she has sharp teeth, claws and slitted eyes. Another clue is at her chest, the red and black cat symbol. Clark may be too polite to look, but Lois may not.

Superman has posed:
Way too polite, for the top of it is peeked at and then the location smacks Clark and he averts his gaze.

"The Daily Planet is a newspaper. We report on current events for people who weren't here to see and hear them for themselves," Clark says, tryingot be oh so helpful.

"You're not from Earth? Thundera is your planet? What are you doing here?" Because now that he has a name, he's going to check with Seven, see what his AI has on this planet!

Lois Lane has posed:
A corner of Lois' mouth quirks upward when Cheetara makes her guess at what The Daily Planet is. Thankfully, Clark helpfully answers that question and Lois will allow an echoing nod of agreement with his words. "And why are you here?" She'll ask after Clark interjects his own questions, even as her gaze takes in the woman's appearance (because how can you miss it?) and her outfit. Especially the profile of roaring black cat against red. "An interesting choice in clothes. The cat head, is it a symbol of something?"

Cheetara (277) has posed:
    Cheetara looks upwards, and it's clear she can't read the words there. Might be the reason why she missed it. "Was....my planet. Last I heard, the planet was destroyed. It looked that way as we fled on the royal flagship." She then looks to Lois, then to the symbol on her chest. "The symbol of the Thundercats. I know there's, at least, one more on this world with me. I only hope the rest of my friends are here, and well.."

Superman has posed:
Another one? Clark turns to look at Lois. His blue eyes are wide. His brows drawn together in sympathy. We know another orphaned alien, don't we?

Lois Lane has posed:
A planet destroyed. While the irony is still there, it's not humorous irony any longer.

Her gaze meets Clark and there's a silent answer with them. Yes, they do.

"I'm sorry." Lois says, her gaze upon Cheetara still, as the other woman explains the rest of her story via the translator. The mention of a royal flagship is heard and while not necessarily pounced upon by Lois yet, it is shelved away for later questioning. "Thundercats." Lois will say, obviously mulling over that particular word, "Do you think others escaped? Beyond yourself and your friend?" Comes the next question, and while the question might sound harsh, Lois' voice has soften with that question.

Cheetara (277) has posed:
    "I certainly hope others escaped, but I don't think I'm on my own." Cheetara says quietly. "Just...a feeling." She says quietly. "I know one did not." She says with a deep, calming breath. "Jaga was the only one who could've flown the flagship, and activated our escape pods. Sadly, the AI was damaged, so he had to do it....manually. Which means, he survived just long enough to see this planet, and activated the escape pods. I do not know where he is now, but I hope he is in no pain."

Superman has posed:
Clark is such softly, for the story has him looking almost as if he understands what Cheetara feels. Survivors. Thunderans. Clark will try to find them. He can look the whole of the planet. He listens in to Cheetara's heartbeat, seeking to be able to pick out that sound amongst the others, as he's done with Lois's heartbeat. He also listens past the translator, to the sound of her language. He will listen for that too.

"I hope that you're able to find them... or someone to help you," he says softly, memorizing everything he can.

Lois Lane has posed:
Even Lois can see beyond the story here, much like she did for Superman, Faora, Supergirl and even Power Girl.

Her expression turns sympathetic as she offers in a matching tone, "I hope you find them as well. If you give us their names -" She offers, both for the story most likely, but also to help Cheetara, "- We can keep an eye out for them. Tell them you're here, that they're not alone."

A look will be sent to Clark now, "We've some friends who might be able to help find them too."

Cheetara (277) has posed:
    "Tygra. Tiger stripes, tall. Panthro, blue skin, strongest and most experienced of us all. Wily Kat and Wily Kit, brother and sister, and also the youngest. And Lion-O, Lord of the thundercats. Each of them will have this symbol upon them." Cheetara points to the symbol upon her chest. "Each of them have their own........skills. Like my speed."

She then smiles. "I imagine I shall see you both soon." She says as she starts her way in the opposite direction of the bikers.....with the police sirens beginning to wail in their direction.