Superman Monitor Tapes

[BornToRun]

Superman II

Real Name: Project El. Also known to go by Conner Kent, Kon-El.
Height: 5’10.5"
Weight: 185lbs
Hair: Black
Eyes: Blue
Age: 4 months (appears to be in his mid-20s)
Birthplace: Cadmus Project lab outside of Metropolis
Occupation: Superhero (no other occupation as yet)
Notable Aliases: Don't ever call him "Superboy."
Known Relatives: Unknown. He is a clone, whose biological donors include Superman and possibly Lex Luthor or Iron Munro. Munro also claims to have used the biological materials from a number of other metahumans to enhance Conner's genetic soup.
Skills and Abilities: Tactile telekinesis. This ability also allows him to fly. Conner possesses significant invulnerability, his legacy from the first Superman. More abilities may develop as the clone body acclimates and absorbs yellow sunlight.
First Appearance: E8: Superman #1 (Multiverse)

Bio: On Earth-8, there was no Newsboy Legion to free the cloned Superman from his holding tank during the course of the cloning process as there was on New Earth. Consequently, Conner remained there for longer and matured almost completely before being freed from the experiment by a shadowy figure. It's unknown who freed Conner but it's safe to say that it was done at great personal risk, as Iron Munro's DEO was heavily involved in Project El and the number of secret agents hanging out around the experiment with weapons was pretty large.

Once freed, Superman wandered Metropolis for a few days, trying to decide a path for himself. Ultimately, word leaked to John Henry Irons, a consulting scientist on Project El, that the subject had escaped and he enlisted Supergirl's help in finding him. Once they did so, though, they did not return Superman to the DEO or Cadmus, instead opting to turn custody of the clone over to Jonathan and Martha Kent. The couple spent some time with Conner, trying to instill in him some of the values that had made Kal-El the inspiration that he was, but they were too old ot raise a child again from scratch and Conner was too fully matured to have the desire to spend too much time there.

Having sampled a bit of Clark's life, Conner was lef tot decide whether he wanted to embrace his heritage and become a superhero. He was hesitant at first until Hank Henshaw, a former astronaut disfigured in an accident that the first Superman had failed to stop, returned to earth with a misguided plan to reverse time that would, in fact, have destroyed the planet.

[BornToRun]

Dear Conner,

I'm sorry I can't give you much in the way of identification on myself, but if anyone ever sees this letter I need it to be vague enough to provide me with time to beat a hasty retreat.

Some people are coming for you.

My boss, a very dangerous and powerful man, has decided that he needs to find out what makes you tick. I don't think they would hurt you—if they even could—but I'll just say it this way: I'm a pretty powerful metahuman myself and they've managed to keep me on a leash for months now.

I work for a man named who likes to stay in the shadows and manipulate people. When he was young, he was the leader of a group of metahumans who worked in concert with the US government during and immediately after World War II. Later in life, he was recruited by the government to look into a Vietnam-era group of unauthorized superheroes, and managed to carve a niche for himself in the DEO. He's basically the Top Cop in the federal government when it comes to super-people.

He's got you in his sights.

These crazy chicks who work for him are investigating all the people you've been associated with so far. I don't think they were keeping up with you at first, but that Lois Lane woman—the reporter who used to hang around with the real Superman—has been flagged as a person of interest. So if you're tight with her, it's a good idea to let her know.

A little background, alright? It probably won't help much, but it will provide you with context. Munro is the descendant of the first documented metahumans in America—his grandfather was born on Jupiter after having had a run-in with an alien empire called the H'san Natal. They didn't detect any kind of powers in him, though, before giving up on him and sending him back to earth. When he had a child, the child had powers. That was Munro's father, Hugo Danner. Danner, ultimately, had his son and disappeared into the sunset, but Iron wasn't done with the H'san Natal, who have become a problem recently. I think that's why he wants you so badly.

You see, after their failed attempt in making a metahuman to serve them with Iron's grandpa, the H'san Natal tried again—this time impregnating a number of earth women (what can I say? Apparently Earth girls are easy or something) and simultaneously clicking some kind of cosmic “on” switch that enabled powers.

Cody Driscoll is a powerful young man who can do a lot of Superman-type stuff. He's got strength, speed and invulenrability. Isaiah Crockett can throw fire around, and Toni Monetti can do the same with plasma energy—use it to make solid or semi-solid object kind of like that Green Lantern guy who recently popped up. But not as cool.

These kids might be on your tail, too. It's important that you be aware of them.