The Red Capes Are Coming

NAIROMI, AFRICA

A Land Rover drives through a desert village amidst a sandstorm, parking near a stone fortress. Two people are brought out of the car with bags in their heads by the African militia, and then let through the gates. The first revealed is LOIS LANE, who sees a Slavic man wearing sunglasses – ANATOLI - before from his back comes the militia’s leader, GENERAL AMAJAGH. Lois walks towards him as Amajagh slouches in a chair, and takes out a small notepad.

LOIS LANE
Are you a terrorist, general?

GENERAL AMAJAGH
They did not tell me the interview was with a lady.

LOIS LANE
I'm not a lady, I'm a journalist.

As we hear Amajagh’s response, the other man who left with Lois from the car, Jimmy, is taking photographs when the Slav puts his hand in front of the lens, and grabs the camera. Jimmy gives in, and lets him take the camera.

GENERAL AMAJAGH (OS)
What I am, is a man with nothing, except a love of my people.

The Russian rewinds the camera, opens it…

JIMMY
Uh, don't open... You just exposed...

…and takes out the film while dropping the camera, complete with pulling the reel out of the cartridge.

LOIS LANE
Who's paying for these security contractors, general?

GENERAL AMAJAGH
Who pays for the drones that passed over our heads at night? One question begs another. Yes?

The Slav tosses the cartridge on the ground, and steps on it, discovering inside a tracking device glowing a light. He then shows it to the militia that drove Lois there.

ANATOLI
CIA.

MILITIA
They're tracking us!

The Russian breaks the tracker while the militia surround Jimmy, brings him to his knees, and an angry Amajagh gets up and grabs a gun from a lackey to walk towards the photographer.

AMAJAGH
You!
Lois starts walking towards Jimmy…

LOIS LANE
No!

…and two henchmen next to her grab her arms to stop her. Jimmy starts talking in subtitled foreign language.

JIMMY
Not her. We just used her credentials as cover. She doesn't know anything.
[in English] It's okay, Lois.

Jimmy is then executed with a shot to the head.

Cut to black…
…and then inside a building, Amajagh closes a metal door before approaching Lois.

LOIS LANE
I... I didn't know.

GENERAL AMAJAGH
Ignorance is not the same... as innocence. Miss Lane.

Outside, the Slav looks around in the sky, until some of the mercenaires, wearing black fatigues, nod positively to him. The Russian shoots the militia, even the driver as he surrenders. As Amajagh turns his head to listen closely, the mercenaries are shooting the militia. Then the General gets behind Lois…

GENERAL AMAJAGH
Get up! Stand up!

…and holds a gun to her head. Outside, one of the bullets hits Lois’s notebook.

One of the mercenaries open the fortress gates, showing the Slav and his companions in motorcycles.

ANATOLY
Move out!

They start the engines and drive away, just as a really fast flying object makes a sonic boom and prepares its landing. It’s a bird, it’s a plane?

In his hideout, Amajagh is holding Lois as SUPERMAN breaks the ceiling and lands in front of them. Lois smiles despite being at gunpoint.

GENERAL AMAJAGH
Take one step, you will see the inside of her head.

Lois lets her hands go of the arm around her neck, smiles, Superman smiles back… and then he flies towards Amajagh, breaking down the wall behind them but leaving Lois unharmed.

Cut to black.
WOMAN (VO)
The women in the village heard a noise.

Cut to CAPITOL BUILDING
An African woman, Kahina Ziri, is talking in a Congressional hearing.

KAHINA
Like the sky crack open. He came down, so many dead.

We then see who is committee listening to her, led by SENATOR JUNE FINCH of Kentucky, who listens to it all with a stern look. An Asian woman in sunglasses is also among the spectators.

KAHINA
Even worse came after. The government attacked. No mercy in the villages. My parents tried to run...

Kahina starts crying and can’t talk anymore.

SENATOR FINCH
The world has been so caught up with what Superman can do, that... no one has asked what he should do. Let the record show that this committee holds him responsible.

KAHINA
He'll never answer to you. He answers to no one. Not even I think, to god.

Cut to METROPOLIS
In a rainy afternoon, a taxi arrives at an APARTMENT BUILDING. Lois comes out of it, opens her mailbox, and brings her correspondence and suitcase to her apartment. Inside, she readies her bathtub, and discovers a bullet in her notepad. Afterwards, she’s taking her bath while holding the bullet. Once she hears the front door unlocking, she puts the bullet near the shampoo. CLARK KENT enters, carrying a paper bag full of flowers.

CLARK KENT
Hey.

LOIS LANE
Hey.

CLARK KENT
I was going to cook. Surprise you.

Lois tries to smile, but then scowls and speaks.

LOIS LANE
They held hearings about what happened. They're saying that...

CLARK KENT
I don't care. I don't care what they're saying. The woman I love could have been blown up or shot. Think of what could have happened.

LOIS LANE
Well, think about what did happen.

CLARK KENT
I didn't kill those men if that's what they think. If that's what you're saying?

LOIS LANE
I'm saying I want to understand what happened. I'm saying, thank you for saving my life. I'm saying there's a cost.

Clark puts the bag in a nearby chair, pats Lois’s head and puts his hand on her shoulder.

LOIS LANE
I just don't know if it's possible.

CLARK KENT
Don't know what's possible?

LOIS LANE
For you to love me and be you.

Clark hands her a rose that was in bag. She smiles, and then he enters the tub, standing on it.

LOIS LANE
Clark, you're going to flood the apartment.

CLARK KENT
Mmm-hmm.

He leans down to kiss her. Cut away just as his glasses fall on the floor.