Nathaniel Kent

Chapter 13

Month Later, Washington DC

Closed Meeting of the Senate Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and Capabilities

Senators of the Committee were watching a simulation of a Kryptonian attacking a city, "Within eight minutes of the Kryptonian's attack, the loss of life was in five figures. He brought down 4 skyscrapers full of people in less time than it takes to tell." General Ross said frowning, as the Kryptonian destroyed the city, "Our military response was swift, as it was useless. We were unable to deploy heavier weapons without causing the very loss of life we were trying to prevent. Sadly before long, it became a moot point. The city, and approximately half its inhabitants, were annihilated in under half an hour."

"This is all very dramatic, General, but I'd like to know how accurate it is?" Senator Fench said

"I assure you, Senator Fench, our CGI simulation was created using the actual capabilities and a male Kryptonian. Based on data from the attack on Metropolis."

"Well the Kryptonian amongst us has shown other abilities that his people didn't have." Senator Fench said

"Yes, and he seems to be a different breed of Kryptonian than the others, we must be prepared." General Ross said

"I appreciate the risk, General. But I'm concerned that by forming a committee to study Powerman, we're treating our greatest ally like an enemy. The wildfires in my state would've claimed hundreds of lives and countless acres if he hadn't intervened."

"Senator Adams does raise a valid point. Have you considered approaching Powerman? Asking for his help?"

"We did, and ultimately considered it to big a risk. Given how little we know about him." General Ross said frowning, "Obviously he's performed many heroic, but let's not forget that he's not a human being. We can't make the same assumptions about him that we would Bout our own people. His loyalties, motivations, and psychology is all a mystery to us."

"Agreed and simply by enlisting his help we'd be informing him of the proposed committee's existence. As well as the defensive measures we'd be working on." Senator Stern said

"Precisely, even if we do assume that he's a loyal citizen of Earth, our doctors raised a number of troubling concerns. Is he susceptible to mental illness? PTSD? Dementia? We've had no opportunity to study any Kryptonians with Powerman himself taking the corpses and the technology before launching them into the sun, so we don't know."

"I assume you've also spoken to psychologists and political scientists about Powerman's impact on the geopolitical stage." Fench said

"We have, Senator Fench. And there, quite frankly, lie some of our greatest concerns. Thus far Powerman has mostly dealt with natural disasters, crime and humanitarian missions. He's stayed out of conflicts between nations. But how long can we expect that to last? And what happens when he appears to side with one country over another? As seriously as we are taking this l, think about what a paranoid regime like North Korea is doing. In trying to save a few lives, Powerman can start a war. And currently, if he embarks on a course we perceive as harmful we have no means of stopping him."

"What I keep hearing is that we don't know enough about Powerman. But we know some things. He was born on Earth and raised here. He defended humanity against the people he should've sided with, not only did he fight his own people he made sure that there were no casualties during his battle and helped Kent Industries rebuild all the damage done to Metropolis during the invasion. I still say we should approach him." Senator Adams said

"And I said it's foolhardy to show our hand before we have more information. We can always approach Powerman later, but once we do there's no going back." Senator Stern said