It felt like a dream… a hazy, drunken dream where I couldn't hear or see properly. Blurry shapes drifted past me. Sometimes I saw a man wearing a ridiculous-looking headpiece with blue lights flickering all around him. Other times, I saw a beautiful woman, whispering words I couldn't understand, covering my face in kisses.
This time when I opened my eyes, I saw those two faces again. The woman was crying, tears streaming down as she clutched me close. They kept repeating a word — no, a name.
Kal-El.
The moment I heard it, clarity struck me like lightning. They were calling me. I was Kal-El.
Before I could process it, both of them hugged and kissed me again. My body twitched, and I realized—I had tiny hands. A baby's body. I tried to speak but only managed a loud wail. The woman sobbed harder, saying something to the man. He reluctantly placed me down. A glass barrier slid between us, separating me from them forever.
I heard alarms. Loud noises. Then silence, broken only by the thrum of engines. My cradle shuddered as it shot through space.
Through the glass, I saw it. A magnificent city… an enormous planet… my planet. Krypton.
And then—
BOOM.
A light brighter than anything I had ever seen swallowed everything. I couldn't open my eyes for a long time. Krypton was gone. My parents were gone.
That's when it hit me.
I had been reincarnated as Kal-El. As Superman.
In my previous life, I was an otaku. My parents were rich enough to let me live as I wanted. And so I wasted my twenties collecting comics, collectibles, and figurines. I also loved DC — Superman, Batman, Flash, Joker, the Justice League, even the Injustice storylines. Marvel? Eh, I only really liked the movies.
How did I die? I couldn't tell you. Probably a heart attack in my sleep. That would be just my luck. No God, no Truck-kun, no wishes. Just—bam. Dead.
But I'm not complaining. Because now? I am Superman.
Well… technically I'm a crying baby right now. But one day, I will be the Superman. The Man of Steel. The most overpowered comic book character of all time.
The question is—what version of Superman am I? Comics? Movies? Cartoons? Injustice? There are dozens of DC timelines and multiverses. Am I in Silver Age Superman territory, where I can sneeze away galaxies? Or something more normal?
No point in stressing over it right now though.
My Kryptonian parents—Jor-El and Lara—just died didn't they? Krypton exploded. I should feel devastated, but honestly… I don't. Maybe it's because I never got to know them. Still, knowing that a whole planet died which included my new beautiful mother… yeah, that hurt.
And then there's Kara. My cousin. Supergirl. In most stories, she was launched right after me, only to arrive much later than me due to varying reasons. Will that happen here? I wanted to check, but dizziness swallowed me and I passed out.
When I opened my eyes again, I was staring at two new faces. A kind, beautiful blonde woman and a rugged, pot-bellied man with brown hair.
I could only hope that they were Martha and Jonathan Kent.
If that was true, then I had finally arrived at the famous Kent Farm in Smallville, Kansas.
This time, I could actually understand what they were saying. My Kryptonian parents must have been speaking their own language, which had sounded strange and alien to me. But the Kents… they were human. Their voices carried warmth, gentleness, and a sense of home I hadn't even realized I was craving.
I couldn't help but think that these people were saints. I mean, who just finds an alien baby in a spaceship and decides, "Yup, let's raise him as our own son"? Good thing they never saw the movie Brightburn.
And no I would not go Darkseid ... that would never happen.
The blonde woman cradled me against her bosom, whispering softly as she told her husband they were taking me home.
And so I guess from this moment on, I am Clark Kent.
And I swear, I will be the most handsome, coolest, strongest Superman ever!