Clark Kent (UE-43)

"After everything that I've done, you'd still try and save me? I've told you before. To me, everyone's worth saving."

- Mitch Anderson and Superman

Clark Kent, born as Kal-El, is the vigilante known as Superman. Soon after he was born, Kal-El was sent away from his dying home planet of Krypton to Earth, where he landed in Smallville and was raised by Jonathan and Martha Kent as Clark Kent. Kent soon grew up to become a vigilante in Metropolis while living a life as a reporter at the Daily Planet. At the Daily Planet, Kent met Lois Lane, whom he later married and had two children with.

Destruction of Krypton
Kal-El was born around 1977 in Kryptonopolis on the planet Krypton to well-respected scientists Jor-El and Lara Lor-Van. His birth was a significant event on the planet as it was the first natural birth in centuries due to their practice of genetically engineering their children.

Soon after his birth, Krypton's resources began to reach exhaustion, and it began to destroy itself, which was only worsened when the planet fell into a state of war as a result. Realizing it was the only way to save their son, Jor-El and Lara placed Kal in a pod on a course for the planet Earth. They both intended to place Sunstone Crystals containing AI versions of themselves inside the pod to guide Kal upon reaching the planet, but Lara's was stolen by her ex-husband, Zeta-Rho, as revenge for leaving him.

Childhood
After entering Earth's atmosphere, the pod crash-landed on the Kent Farm in Smallville, Kansas, as Martha and Jonathan Kent were travelling to church. They went to investigate the unknown object and were surprised to see a baby inside, who they soon adopted under the name, Clark Kent.

When Kent was four years old, his powers began to manifest as he was playing with a toy rocket ship, resulting in him throwing it through the Kent House. When he was six years old, his adoptive parents told him what they knew about his alien heritage. At around this time, Kent started first grade, where he met his favorite teacher, Lois Hannigan, who taught him about fractions and how to write in cursive.

While he was growing up, Jonathan was very protective of his son and was determined to prevent his secret from becoming known to the public. One day, Clark and his father were walking around in Smallville when Clark saved a young boy from being hit by a bus. Thinking he would be upset at this, Clark apologized to his father, but Jonathan told him that he did the right thing by not letting the child get hit.

Some time later, Jonathan asked Clark to watch "All the President's Men" with him, a movie about determined reporters on a crusade to take down Richard Nixon after the Watergate Scandal. The moral of the story, to never give up even in the face of adversity, resonated with Clark so much that it inspired his lifelong passion for journalism.

High School
As a teenager, Kent began to attend Smallville High School and soon befriended Kyle Cushing, Pete Ross, and Lana Lang, the latter of which he eventually began dating. During his time at the school, he also became the team manager of the Smallville Crows and a reporter for the school newspaper.

In the ninth grade, Kent asked his father if he could join the school baseball team, but he refused to allow it due to the possibility of him harming one of the other players. Kent showed up to the field regardless, but went home at the last minute after realizing he only wanted to join to impress a girl. As a teenager, Kent also trained with his father on how to control his superhuman strength using a log in the Kent Farm storm cellar.

At some point, Kent, Ross, and Lang attended a Soul Asylum concert together. As they were driving home, the car went off-road after Ross fell asleep at the wheel, resulting in Lang passing out and Kent being forced to save them, though the car was destroyed. At some point after this, Kent and Lang broke up, resulting in him listening to a lot of music from REO Speedwagon as a coping mechanism.

Family Tragedy
Every year, Kent's mother would spend weeks planning what the family would donate to the Smallville Harvest Festival, which taught him the value of helping others. One year, the family were out hanging banners for the festival when Jonathan suddenly died of a heart attack. Clark and Martha later attended his funeral service at Smallville Cemetery, though he soon ran off.

The following year, Kent was struggling to discover his purpose on Earth, and so he began to use his powers to fight crime as a vigilante, concealing his identity using a ski-mask. In one incident, Kent used his superhuman strength and invulnerability to convince several men to return items to a store they were robbing. This resulted in a conversation with his mother, which ended with her giving him the Sunstone Crystal that was in his pod. Soon after, Kent said goodbye to his mother and left Smallville.

Training
He soon followed the crystal to the Arctic, where it stopped glowing. Not understanding what was happening, Kent threw the crystal to the ground in frustration and turned his back, at which point it began to create an ice structure, which he would later name the Fortress of Solitude. As the structure was forming, he attempted to run away, but was buried under a large amount of snow and was forced to use his heat vision to escape. Upon returning to the surface, Kent noticed a large entrance and went inside, where he soon saw the crystal floating atop a pedestal. He then picked it up and inserted it into a crevice, at which point it displayed a hologram of Jor-El, who soon introduced himself as Kent's father, before explaining to him about his Kryptonian heritage and where his powers come from. Following Jor-El's guidance, Kent then began to train to better harness his powers until one day, he began to fly whilst running. After a brief conversation with his father, Kent decided it was finally time to return home to discover why he wished to become the champion of Earth.

Returning Home
Arriving at the Kent Farm, Clark was greeted by his mother, who he soon told about what he had learned while he was gone. He then returned the Sunstone Crystal to his pod and went to find Lana, though he soon discovered that she was already married to Kyle Cushing. Kent then returned home and spoke with his mother, who gave him a costume that she had made after having a dream of him flying. He then apologized for leaving so soon after his father's death, but Martha told him that it was fine, as it was something he had to do. She then suggested that something was missing from the chest area of the costume, which Clark later solved by adding the symbol of the House of El.

Debut
Soon afterward, Kent moved to Metropolis and began searching for an apartment to rent, but he was soon interrupted after noticing that a car had lost its ability to break. Changing into his costume, Kent picked up the car as it was falling off a bridge, saving a young boy in the process. He then used a nearby phone booth to change into his civilian attire, before being approached by a bystander, who asked if he had seen the mysterious hero. Kent feigned ignorance and asked several questions before the woman walked off, stating that someone at the Daily Planet should hear about what happened. At some point after this, Kent saved a boat from sinking at Hob's River, an event which was photographed by Jimmy Olsen.

Atom-Man Investigation
Kent later decided to get an interview for a job as a reporter at the Daily Planet with the editor-in-chief, Perry White. Despite initially rejecting his résumé due to lack of experience, White decided to hire him after Kent agreed to have no health insurance or overtime pay and to pick up his dry cleaning every Thursday. White then introduced him to Lois Lane, who he soon learned was annoyed that her story about a white supremacist committing arson against minority-owned businesses was being overshadowed by his heroic activities.

After asking if he could help her with the investigation, the pair spent several days questioning victims, all while their investigation was being overshadowed by Kent's other activities, including rescuing sixty-three fishermen from a sinking ship. During their investigation, Henry Miller was arrested and the pair discussed whether he or one of their other suspects was the culprit. After complementing Lane on her work as a journalist, she offered to speak with Perry White to get Kent his own issue to report on, but he stated he was happy working with her. She then asked if this was because of the story or because of the company, to which Kent responded that he thought this was a trick question, before saying goodnight.

The following day, Kent asked Ron Troupe where Lane was and was told she was interviewing a suspect. After determining that it was Miller, Kent put on his costume and raced to the scene, managing to block an incoming flamethrower attack directed at Lane, before using his freeze breath to disable the weapon. Atom-Man then threw two grenades at families on different sides of the street, believing that it was impossible to stop both. However, Kent managed to destroy one using his heat vision and hold back the explosion from the other, resulting in him being thrown through a store window. As he was getting up, Lane used a taser to subdue Miller before asking how the hero knew what was happening, with Kent then explaining that he had read her reports in the Daily Planet and that he had superhuman hearing. She then asked what his name was, but he simply replied that he's sure that she will think of something, before flying away. Lane was then asked his name by a store owner, and she replied that it is "Superman".

First Solo Byline
Some time later, Kent rescued a helicopter as it was about to crash, an event which was reported in the same newspaper that contained his first solo byline, which exposed the corruption of Councilman Hatch. He later visited his adoptive father's grave and wondered if he would be proud of both his civilian and heroic activities. He then thanked his father for teaching him that there is more than one way to make the world a better place, before flying off.

TV Interview
A few months after the Atom-Man investigation, Kent and Lane began dating, and she finally convinced Superman to do a television interview with her, during which she asked him if he was raised in the United States. Instead of confirming that he was, Superman stated that he wanted to be a hero for the entire planet rather than just one country, stating that he had learned all human languages to better connect with people. The interview was then interrupted after Lane's mic malfunctioned and, as she went to have it fixed, Lane spoke with a producer who was convinced that Superman had feelings for her. Lane ignored this, stating that she was in love with Clark, before realizing that Superman had heard the entire conversation due to his superhuman hearing. She then returned to her seat and apologized for being unprofessional, before continuing with the interview. At some point after the interview, Kent changed the design of his costume.

Marriage
Some time later, Kent took Lane to Smallville to meet his mother and to tell her about his secret identity. After a brief conversation about this with Martha, Clark took Lane to a field outside, took off his glasses and began to fly. Afterward, they went back to Metropolis to continue their relationship until Kent took her to the Fortress of Solitude to propose, to which she agreed, and they flew into the air while kissing. They then got married in Smallville and went on a honeymoon, where he realized that he had kept his secret identity for so long to share it with her. Kent then went to the Fortress of Solitude to tell Jor-El about the wedding. At some point after this, Kent and Lane began searching for a loft to share, with one potential candidate being a loft in Midtown across the street from a Krank Co. warehouse, though they did not end up moving there.

First Anniversary
On their first wedding anniversary, Kent woke up and was reminded about their dinner reservation at Plastino's that night. Arriving at the Daily Planet, he assured Lane he wouldn't miss it, but he got caught up fighting the Mechanical Monsters in Tokyo, and so he couldn't make it.

The next morning, Kent apologized for missing their date and told Lane that he had booked another reservation as they were heading to work. However, Lane could not attend this time due to removing a small toy car from the printing press at the Daily Planet, and so Kent talked to Stan instead before leaving.

The morning afterward, Lane bought Kent some chocolates to apologize and told him that the restaurant had reserved a table despite being fully booked due to Kent saving some wine glasses from shattering the previous night. After a brief conversation in which Lane stated that she did not believe that the toy car was placed in the printing press by mistake, the pair travelled to a toy store to ask the owner about it, but Lane left believing he was lying to her. They then travelled to work, where Kent once again promised to come to the restaurant that night, but he could not make it again due to preventing Nuclear Man's attack on Las Vegas.

The following morning, Kent apologized once more for missing their reservation, but Lane assured him that she understood and that she knows he loves her regardless. The pair then got on the bus, where Kent used his x-ray vision to see that a Krank Co. logo was on the toy car which Lane had discovered. After arriving at work, Lane wondered where she had heard of Krank Co. before, while Clark wondered where he had he left some files for Perry White. The two then promised to make the reservation that night, but Lane got caught up investigating Intergang and could not make it. Kent then decided to eat with Stan instead, as he was already at the restaurant.

The next morning, Lane once again bought Kent some chocolates to apologize and thanked him for helping her put together the connection between Krank Co. and the toy car. The pair then went to Metropolis City Hall, where Lane told Kent that she believed that a corrupt politician was behind Intergang's operation in the city. Arriving at work, Lane stated that the restaurant had agreed to keep an open reservation for them, so they could go whenever they were both available, but Kent suggested that they go somewhere quieter to discuss this. Once outside, he stated that they should cancel the reservation entirely since they were so busy, but Lane refused, and so they both promised to be there again that night. Later that day, Superman was saving people from a burning building when he was kidnapped by Lobo, on behalf of Maxima, and taken to Bibbo's Fav'rit Shrimp Shack on Asteroid AM-DS17. Breaking out of his chains, Kent defeated Lobo and flew back to Earth for his dinner reservation, but he and Lane arrived too late as the restaurant was already closed. They had a brief conversation about if they would always be this busy before Kent suggested flying her to Hawaii since she was looking forward to eating the Hawaiian pork, thus beginning a yearly tradition between the two.

The Twins
In 2006, Lane discovered she was pregnant, and so she and Kent went to Metropolis Hospital, where they soon discovered that they were having twins. Afterward, the pair travelled to the Kent Farm to show Kent's mother the ultrasound picture. In 2007, the twins were born and were named Jonathan and Jordan Kent, after Clark's adoptive and biological father respectively. Around a year later, Lane discovered she was pregnant again, this time with a girl that they intended to call Natalie after Lane's paternal grandmother, though she soon had a miscarriage and the baby died.

According to Kent, Jonathan was easy to raise as he was always happy, though he did once shock his parents after he caused a rope to snap after throwing a baseball at it, suggesting he might have inherited his father's powers. However, testing at the Fortress of Solitude indicated that this was unlikely. On the other hand, Jordan was more difficult to raise as he often threw tantrums and had night terrors, which were later diagnosed as social anxiety disorder.

Superman's Adventures
At some unknown point in his superhero career, Superman fought and defeated Intergang inventor Thaddeus Killgrave, LuthorCorp CEO Lex Luthor, Mechano-Man, Titano, and Atomic Skull. During his time as a hero, Kent teamed up with numerous people, including Oliver Queen and John Diggle, and partnered with the Department of Defense led by his father-in-law General Lane. He also once became infected with green kryptonite, and so had to go to the Fortress of Solitude, where Jor-El told him the only way to save him was to burn the remnants from his body.

Nuclear Emergencies
In fall 2020, Superman dealt with a number of high-profile disasters, including putting out a fire at Ace Chemical, assisting a space shuttle in launching, and preventing the collapse of a smoke stack after an earthquake, all of which were reported by the Daily Planet Network. He also dealt with a nuclear meltdown at Oyster Creek.

After being summoned by General Lane, Superman prevented a nuclear meltdown at the Elison Nuclear Power Plant by creating a massive iceberg and lowering it into the reactor.

Powers

 * Kryptonian Physiology: Due to his Kryptonian physiology, Kent has a variety of superhuman powers when exposed to the energy of a yellow sun. Following a lifetime on Earth and extensive training and experience as a vigilante, Kent's physical abilities surpass that of all other Kryptonians, making him the most powerful being in his universe.
 * Solar Energy Absorption: Kent's body is able to absorb yellow solar radiation and covert it into energy, which in turn fuels his superhuman abilities. When exposed directly to the Sun, Kent's ability to absorb solar radiation is near limitless and can even restore his powers if they have been removed.
 * Enhanced Mental Capacity: Kent's mental abilities far surpass that of other lifeforms, as he is able to process information at incomprehensible speeds. He has used this ability to learn every language on Earth as well as how to speak backwards near instantaneously whilst on the Bizarro World.
 * Flight: Kent can manipulate his gravitational field to levitate and fly at hypersonic speeds, allowing him to travel anywhere almost instantaneously.
 * Freeze Breath: Kent has a much larger lung capacity than humans and so can inhale large amounts of air to expel at superhuman speeds towards his enemies. He can use this ability to freeze objects to sub-zero temperatures or to breathe in noxious substances which would harm regular people.
 * Invulnerability: Kent is impervious to almost all forms of physical damage and so cannot typically be harmed unless special means are used.
 * Accelerated Healing Factor: Even when physically injured, Kent's body heals far more quickly than the average person's would and far more efficiently as the healing process does not leave scars. Likewise, Kent is also unable to put on weight due to how fast his body burns the calories.
 * Contaminant Immunity: Kent is immune to all diseases on Earth and so has never been sick a day in his life.
 * Self-Sustenance: Kent has far fewer physical needs than regular people and so is able to survive without food or sleep for extended periods of time. Likewise, he is able to travel into space without the use of specialist breathing equipment, even when his other powers are not working due to cellular damage.
 * Heat Vision: Kent can fire red energy beams from his eyes, the temperature of which he can adjust at will. He has used this ability to melt or weld together objects, to cauterize wounds, and to heat up beverages.
 * Solar Flare: Kent has the ability to expel massive amounts of solar energy from his body, though this comes at the cost of him losing his powers for days afterward. When supercharged with energy after flying into the Sun, Kent was able to use this ability to forcibly separate his universe and the Bizarro World without losing his powers afterward.
 * Longevity: Kent ages at a far slower rate than humans and so still looks as he did in high school despite being middle-aged.
 * Sonic Scream: Kent has the ability to scream at incredibly high decibel volumes, meaning his voice can be heard for thousands of miles.
 * Superhuman Senses: Kent's senses are far beyond that of any creature on Earth, and so he can perceive almost anything in his environment when focusing on it.
 * Superhuman Hearing: Kent is able to perceive sounds from thousands of miles away when focusing on them. He often uses this ability to sense danger around the world.
 * Superhuman Smell: Although he uses this power rarely, by his own admission, Kent can smell things at a superhuman level. He used this to smell the scent of alcohol coming from Jonathan and the scent of cologne coming from Jordan from great distances.
 * Superhuman Vision: Kent's vision far surpasses that of any other being, as he is able to view the entire electromagnetic spectrum at will and differentiate between different forms of energy.
 * Telescopic Vision: Kent is capable of seeing things from incredible distances and can zoom in on them if required.
 * Thermal Vision: Kent is able to see thermal energy, such as the heat signatures that living creatures give off.
 * X-Ray Vision: Kent can see through solid objects provided they are not covered in lead.
 * Superhuman Speed: Kent is able to move at speeds which far surpass that of any creature or machine on Earth. He is known to be able to run as fast as Mach 10 and is able to fly so fast that he can circle the planet several times in a second when supercharged with solar energy.
 * Superhuman Reflexes: Kent is able to perceive things much faster than the average person, allowing him to respond to incoming attacks at superhuman speeds.
 * Superhuman Stamina: Kent can run or fly for extended periods of time without showing any physical signs of exhaustion. He is even capable of continuing to fight when physically injured by green kryptonite or extreme force.
 * Superhuman Strength: Kent is able to lift extremely heavy objects with ease and can punch so hard that his attacks produce powerful shockwaves.
 * Thunderclap: Kent can produce a powerful shockwave capable of knocking people unconscious simply by clapping his hands.

Abilities

 * Genius-Level Intellect: Kent is an exceptionally intelligent individual due to his superhuman mental processing. He has been able to outsmart geniuses such as Thaddeus Killgrave and learn countless human and alien languages during his time as Superman.
 * Engineering: Kent has shown some level of competence at engineering when it comes to Kryptonian technology, being able to figure out how various objects work when humans were incapable of doing so.
 * Investigation: Kent is an expert investigator due to his extensive experience as a reporter for the Daily Planet.
 * Leadership: Kent is a talented leader and as such has been able to effectively organize the defense of the entire planet on more than one occasion.
 * Multilingualism: In an attempt to further connect with the people of Earth, Kent has supposedly learned every human language and has been shown to fluently speak Cantonese, English, Korean, Kryptonese, Russian, and Spanish. He was also able to speak English backwards whilst on the Bizarro World.
 * Indomitable Will: Kent has a powerful will and is therefore essentially morally incorruptible. Even when being possessed by General Zod, he was able to successfully reject and expel his consciousness due to the love he has for his family.
 * Peak Physical Condition: Kent is in peak physical condition due to his superhuman abilities not allowing him to gain weight. Even when compared to other Kryptonians, Kent is so fit that he is able to fight and defeat powerful foes such as Tal-Rho.
 * Hand-to-Hand Combat: Kent is an expert in hand-to-hand combat and as such is able to fight and defeat almost any foe. He was even able to fight John Henry Irons whilst he was wearing his war suit, which was specifically designed to counteract Kent's abilities.

Weaknesses

 * High-Frequencies: Kent is vulnerable to high-pitched noises, as shown when Thaddeus Killgrave fired a sonic blaster at him.
 * Green Kryptonite: Kent is susceptible to green kryptonite as it is the only substance which can penetrate his skin. After being exposed to it for long enough, Kent will get sick and eventually die.
 * Lead: Kent is able to see through every object except for lead.
 * Red Sun Energy: Kent will be exponentially weakened and eventually become powerless if exposed to red solar energy, as it will override the yellow solar energy in his cells.
 * Solar Energy Depletion: As Kent's superhuman powers come from exposure to yellow solar energy, he will become powerless if no longer exposed or if the solar energy in his cells is somehow depleted.

Former Weaknesses

 * Inter-Dimensional Kinesthesis: Three months after the defeat of Tal-Rho, Kent began experiencing visions of destruction due to Bizarro's presence in his universe.

Current Equipment

 * Glasses: Kent wears a pair of glasses as a civilian to conceal his identity.
 * Superman Suits: Kent wears a series of protective suits whilst operating as Superman.

Former Equipment

 * Vigilante Suit: Kent wore a black suit with a ski mask whilst operating as "Ski Mask Guy".