Fanfic / Superman: House of El

Top: Clark and Keira Kent. Bottom: Kal-El and Kara Zor-El.

Superman: House of El is a NSFW fanfic by ErikModi based on Superman.

Post-Crisis, the origin for Supergirl goes something like this: Zor-El built a ship to carry his daughter, Kara Zor-El, to Earth in pursuit of her baby cousin Kal-El, to guide him, protect him, and teach him about Krypton. But Kara's ship is waylaid, she spends time in suspended animation of some sort, and by the time she makes it to Earth, Kal-El has grown into Clark Kent, reporter at the Daily Planet, and become Earth's most powerful hero, Superman.

This story asks what would happen if Zor-El's plan worked, if Kal and Kara arrived on Earth at the same time. How would things be different if Jonathan and Martha Kent found two alien orphans in a Kansas cornfield? How do things change if Clark Kent has a "big sister" looking out for him?

Along the way, Keira Kent takes a job at Luthorcorp, using her scientific education and the knowledge of Krypton to help humanity. Clark seeks his own place in the world. Kal-El and Kara Zor-El start taking the steps that will lead them to ushering in a new Age of Heroes. And they hook up with some of the most beautiful women in the DC universe.

The fic is broken into story arcs, chapter titles indicating which arc they are in.

• "Smallville" (Chapter 1 — 11): Detailing Clark's last few years in high school, Keira's internship at Luthorcorp, the challenges faced by the Last Son and Daughter of Krypton, and Clark's relationship with Lana Lang.
• "Superboy And Supergirl" (Chapter 12 — 25): Kal and Kara start taking more direct action to protect Earth and humanity, and begin meeting more exceptional individuals.
• "Chrysalis" (Chapter 26 — ??): Speeding through Clark's college years.

A.I.-Generated Artwork is used to generate images within the story.

---

Superman: House of El contains examples of the following tropes:

• A-Cup Angst:
  • Their first time together, Lana actually apologizes to Clark that her breasts aren't as big as Kara's. Clark makes it clear that while he may like big boobs, he loves Lana. All of her.
  • Defied by Alex Danvers, who admits to sometimes wishing she had boobs like Kara. . . then thinks about how much back pain would be involved in being that busty, and decides she's happy with what she has. Of course, Kara has never had to worry about back pain.
• Adaptation Name Change:
  • Kara Zor-El goes by Keira Kent, instead of Kara Danvers (or any of the other aliases she’s had in various comic iterations).
  • The Fortress of Solitude is renamed the Fortress of El here. Because it can't exactly be a fortress of "solitude" if Clark and Keira are often visiting it together.
  • Cir-El's human name is Mia Lane, though Clark still calls her Mia Kent.
• Adaptation Relationship Overhaul:
  • Because she arrived on Earth at the same time as Kal-El, Kara Zor-El is eight years older than Kal, his big sister and mentor figure, educating him about their Kryptonian heritage through the Fortress database. She's also Jonathan and Martha Kent's adopted daughter, alongside Clark as their adopted son.
  • Clark and Lana continue to date as they both go to Metropolis University. Clark meets Lori Lemaris there, and she becomes "Friends with Benefits" to both Clark and Lana, more or less.
• Adaptation Species Change: Downplayed. In the comics, Lori Lemaris was a mermaid from Atlantis before it was solidified that Superman and Aquaman live in the same continuity; after that, she was retconned into being from a different part of Atlantis with more traditional mermaids. In this fic, she’s largely indistinguishable from other Atlanteans. Though she does retain the telepathy of her comic counterpart, which she claims is unique among her people.
• Adaptational Early Appearance:
  • Kara is the most obvious, arriving on Earth at the same time as Kal, and being eight years older and more mature than he is.
  • Faora-Ul is the very first supervillain Kal and Kara fight, the first time they don their Kryptonian costumes to deal with a threat only they can.
  • The Eradicator arrives on Earth before Clark is even in college, well before he’ll start acting as Superman.
• Adaptational Intelligence: Kara is a brilliant scientist in this fic, using not just her own intelligence but her early schooling on Krypton and the legacy of knowledge in the Fortress to advance science and technology to help humanity.
• Adaptational Job Change:
  • In this universe, Keira works as a scientist at Luthorcorp.
  • Diana Prince is a professor of literature, mythology, and folklore at Metropolis University.
• Affectionate Nickname: Diana quickly takes to calling Lana "little sister."
• Alien Non-Interference Clause: Not officially, but Kal and Kara have debated long and hard about how to use their abilities, and the knowledge contained in the Fortress, to best help humanity, settling on only providing gentle guidance. Part of this is Kara flatly refusing to just hand humanity technology they aren't ready for, since Krypton was destroyed by careless use of their own technology.
• Arbitrary Skepticism: The Last Son of Krypton finds Diana's claim to be an Amazonian warrior princess a bit hard to swallow.
  Diana: I am Diana, Princess of Themyscira, daughter of Queen Hippolyta of the Amazons. I came seeking you, because I believe an Age of Heroes will rise again, that exceptional individuals will protect and inspire all the people of Earth, guiding them into a new era of peace and joy.
  Clark: So. . . you're, like. . . a crazy person?
• Big Eater: Both Kal and Kara. Kara explains that, while they don't actually need to eat, making their solar energy reserves nourish their bodies would leave less of that energy for everything else. But also, as a side-effect of Earth's yellow sun, their metabolisms are supercharged, so they can eat all they want with no worries.
  Lana opened the fridge and blinked. "Tubs of frosting, cookie dough, soda, mini donuts." She opened the freezer. "Ice cream, chocolate bars, peanut butter cups, frozen pizzas." She opened a cupboard, now expecting what was inside. "Mac and cheese, peanut butter, crackers, cookies. You guys eat like eight year olds."
• Boxing Lessons for Superman: In addition to practicing their own Torquasm-Vo and Rao techniques, Clark and Keira don their Blue Kryptonite bracelets to spar with Alex Danvers. When they meet Diana, she schools them in hand-to-hand combat in her own way.
• Clark Kenting: Notable in that Keira came up with their "disguises," less to lead dual identities as superheroes and more to conceal their nature as aliens. Glasses are an important part; both Kal and Kara have eyes described as a brilliant, unearthly blue, which the glasses dull to a more ordinary blue. Baggy clothes are also important, concealing Clark's Heroic Build and Kara's Most Common Superpower. But the main key is acting, Clark and Keira playing up the dorky, awkward sides of their personality when in disguise. Diana gets in on it too, using glasses to hide her own startling blue eyes and somewhat conservative attire to downplay her incredible attractiveness.
• Clue, Evidence, and a Smoking Gun: Lana notes that Cir-El isn't her daughter, first pointing out they look nothing alike. Clark dismisses that she has his black hair. Lana asks whose eyes Cir-El has, since Lana's eyes are green, Clark's are blue, but Cir-El's are purple. Clark thinks it might be a quirk of Kryptonian and human genetics interacting. Lana points out Cir-El is curvier than Lana, Clark shrugs it off. Then Lana states that the Fortress has Lana's DNA on file, yet when it scanned Cir-El, found no match for Cir-El's human DNA.
• Deflector Shields: The Eradicator has one, not only absorbing Kal and Kara's heat vision but preventing them from actually touching it and tearing at its (comparatively much more fragile) metal structure. Kal and Kara have to really pour their heat vision into the shield to open a gap for them physically reach The Eradicator to disable it.
• Fantastic Fighting Style:
  • Clark and Keira practice Torquasm-Vo and Torquasm-Rao, linked Kryptonian martial arts that focus on awareness of the body and mind and precision of movement. Developing this skill is key to controlling their powers so they can interact with the world without breaking everything. They teach Lana some Vo and Rao techniques, and later Diana teaches Lana some Amazon meditation, and these combine to give Lana Ki Manipulation powers.
  • Faora is a master of Horu-Kanu, a lethal Kryptonian art involving pressure-point techniques.
• Government Agency of Fiction: The Department of Extranormal Operations was founded after the Smallville meteor shower provided proof of material that doesn't exist in Earth's solar system. Jeremiah Danvers was an NSA agent who investigated the meteor shower and tapped to run the new division. The DEO focuses on protecting Earth from extraterrestrial threats, while Jeremiah is aware of Clark and Keira, helped the Kents legally adopt them while avoiding revealing their nature as aliens, and provides shelter to aliens who are not a threat to Earth, and may be able to help protect it (such as J'onn J'onzz).
• Green Rocks: Kryptonite, as usual. Also as usual, it's Color-Coded for Your Convenience. As in Smallville, substantial fragments of Krypton were dragged behind Kal and Kara's pods, causing a meteor shower over Smallville that led to an abundance of Kryptonite in the area. Kryptonite is stated to be the result of Kryptonian superscience, matter made out of synthetic elementary particles that does not have properties like normal matter and does not "fit" on the Periodic Table.
  • Green Kryptonite is said to be the most common. We haven't seen Clark or Keira exposed to it on-page yet, but they're well aware of it and the threat it poses. The DEO and Luthorcorp have both been stockpiling it from the Smallville meteor shower. Luthorcorp experiments with Green Kryptonite cracked the Phantom Zone, permitting Faora to escape. Later, an unusual interaction with Green Kryptonite gives Smallville High football player Louis Turner super-strength sufficient to hurt Clark.
  • In Chapter 4, Kara makes Blue Kryptonite bracelets for her and Clark. Blue Kryptonite blocks a Kryptonian's ability to access their solar energy reserves, effectively de-powering them. Kara made the bracelets in case Clark or Keira needed to do more than appear to be human, and in case Clark and Lana got a little extra frisky. Later, Kara makes Blue Kryptonite cuffs to secure and depower Faora.
  • In Chapter 6, Clark finds a chunk of Red Kryptonite, which gradually turns him into an asshole. Kara uses a chunk of Blue Kryptonite to neutralize the Red Kryptonite radiation, returning Kal to normal.
• Half-Human Hybrid: Kara confirms by scanning Lana in the Fortress that humans and Kryptonians are not genetically compatible, so Clark and Lana can have all the unprotected sex they want. Kara also performed the scan to get data to find ways to potentially make humans and Kryptonians compatible, in case she or Clark want kids not with each other. Chapter 27, which has a visit from Clark's future daughter Cir-El, indicates Kara will be successful at some point.
• Homage: The Eradicator is reimagined as a weapon created to defend Krypton from extrasolar threats, a crystal containing both a power source and AI code that bonds with materials it is introduced to to form a humanoid body, which it then uses to eradicate anything it does not recognize as "true Kryptonian." Unfortunately, the definition of "true Kryptonian" was programmed to be overly narrow, resulting in it stopping the next attack, and then going on to kill thousands of Kryptonians who didn't meet its standards before being subdued and shot into space. Clark lampshades the similarities with the Babylon 5 episode "Infection."
• Home Nudist: During their training sessions, Clark, Kara and Lana get used to spending their time in the Fortress completely naked, with Diana adopting a similarly lax approach towards clothing when she joins them. Lana even entertains the idea of instituting a "clothing optional" policy when she and Clark get their own place.
• Honorary Uncle: Jeremiah and Eliza Danvers are treated as family by the Kents, thanks to Jeremiah not turning Kal and Kara in as aliens when he discovered them and helping the Kents legally adopt them and conceal their natures. Alex Danvers is an honorary cousin to Clark and Keira. To keep anyone getting suspicious why the head of the DEO is so chummy with some random farmers from Kansas, they keep this relationship under wraps.
• Just a Machine: Essentially applies to the holographic version of Jor-El in the Fortress's computer systems. While this hologram possesses all of Jor-El's memories and can interact with others, it is ultimately a machine rather than a person, with a notable example being when Lana activates the hologram and Jor-El shows no reaction to the fact that she's standing in front of him completely naked. The AIs of Lara, Zor-El, and Alura are stated to be the same by Kara: highly advanced programs, but still just programs, devoid of any true self-awareness. After meeting Cir-El, Kara laments this, since she has some powerful, complex emotions to deal with, and the digital specter of her father can only provide extremely limited comfort.
• Ki Manipulation: Through a combination of Torquasm-Vo, Torquasm-Rao, and Amazon meditation, Lana unlocks this, gaining powers roughly similar to Iron Fist.
• Kissing Cousins: Kara and Kal, justified for a few reasons. For one, Kara manufactured herself the Kryptonian equivalent of an IUD, so there’s no risk. Two, since they're the last two Kryptonians in existence, if there are going to be any more they'll either have to use Fortress technology to either ensure they have healthy kids or Kara will have to use it to find a way to make Kryptonians and humans compatible. Three, they're the only ones who can teach each other to control their powers during sex so they won't harm their fragile human partners. Clark takes a little convincing, since Kara is his cousin by blood and sister by adoption, but he comes around, and they do enjoy their time together.
• The Maiden Name Debate: Implied by the existence of Cir-El. Not only does she not go by "Cir Kal-El" in defiance of Kryptonian naming conventions, when we get a glimpse at her future, Clark calls her "Mia Kent," which Cir-El's mother corrects to "Mia Lane." Indicating Lois won't be taking Clark's last name, and doesn't hold with the way women's names worked on Krypton.
• Man of Steel, Woman of Kleenex: This trope necessitates Kal and Kara "practicing" on each other before they can safely have sex with ordinary humans. After collecting data, Kara notes that if Kal had done with Lana what he did with her, Lana probably wouldn't have survived, and if she did, she'd never be able to walk again or have kids. Also brought up when Lana expresses concern about if even giving Clark oral sex would be safe, Kara confirms that not all of their muscles are so powerful, citing that they would break the toilet if they were.
• Most Common Superpower: Played straight with Kara and Diana, who both have very impressive busts. Averted with Lori Lemaris, who has a slender "swimmer’s body."
• Mrs. Hypothetical: With a twist. When Lana learns about Kryptonian naming conventions (a woman has her father's name as a surname until she gets married, where she takes her husband's name as a surname), she begins to think about becoming "Lana Kal-El." She reflects that it doesn't sound much different from being "Lana Kent," but that it feels different, more becoming his than just joining his family.
• Mundane Utility: Downplayed. Clark mentions a few times that his super-speed isn't as useful as one would think for getting schoolwork done, but it's not entirely useless for that purpose.
• Mythology Gag:
  • Kara’s human name is "Keira Kent," since Cat Grant consistently called a different version of Kara "Keira."
  • Like in Smallville, Clark and Lex are friends, and become so after Clark saved Lex’s life seemingly at the risk of his own.
  • When designing their Kryptonian costumes, Kara briefly considers adding a Cleavage Window to hers (a la Power Girl) before deciding it's "too much."
  • Faora is fascinated by a sheriff's badge, claims it from the sheriff after killing him, and pins it to her dress as soon as she obtains one. Ursa in Superman II, who took many cues from comic Faora, also had a habit of adding "flair" from her opponents to her outfit.
  • There are myths about a "Warrior Princess of World War I." It's Diana.
  • "Amazon meditation" is part of where Diana's powers come from, but she says Amazons are mostly special because they're magic.
  • In the comics, Cir-El believed she was Clark and Lois' daughter from the future, only for it to be revealed she was created by Brainiac as part of one of his schemes. In this story, Cir-El really is Clark and Lois' daughter from the future, and she mentions "Querl" a few times, still tying her to a Brainiac.
• Naked on Arrival: Since the Phantom Zone is a dimension of "nothing," Phantom Zone escapees like Faora arrive back in proper reality with nothing except their physical bodies.
• No Biochemical Barriers: Averted. Kryptonians and humans are not genetically compatible, but after scanning Lana in the Fortress Kara thinks she can super-science a workaround. Cir-El visiting from the future, and a glimpse of her future showing her and her half-brother Jonathan Kent, indicates Kara will be successful. Human diseases are also not compatible with Kryptonian biochemistry, so even without their powers Kal and Kara couldn't get sick or even be carriers for a human disease.
• Parental Sexuality Squick: Kara notes the importance of it when Cir-El responds with "Ew" when Clark and Lana are "having a moment." The implication is that the Man of Steel, Woman of Kleenex problem has been better solved in the future. When we get a glimpse at Cir-El's future, both she and her half-brother Jonathan are slightly grossed out by how affectionate their parents are.
• Patrick Stewart Speech: Clark drops one on Lori Lemaris to convince her that working together with the surface world would be better for Atlantis than waging war. Clark says that despite how much focus is placed on the negative, the trends are very much that things are getting better for everyone, not worse, and if Atlantis revealed themselves and showed humans how much Atlanteans suffer, people would line up to try and help.
• The Peeping Tom: Lana is essentially a rare positive version of this, as she finds that she enjoys watching Clark with other women, either "training" with Kara or with other partners such as Diana or Lori.
• Polyamory: The tag has been in the fic from the first chapter, but Chapter 27 sees Cir-El travel from the future, and it being made clear that while she's Clark Kent's daughter, Lana Lang is not her mother. Cir-El tries not to reveal too much, but both Clark and Lana wonder if their relationship gets more complex. We get a glimpse of Cir-El's future, which all but outright states Clark, Lana, and Lois Lane are a happy throuple, and shows that Cir-El has a half-brother in Jonathan Kent.
• Point of Divergence: The fic is based on the idea that Kara Zor-El arrived on Earth at the same time as Kal-El, and was present to guide him and teach him about his Kryptonian heritage. As such, Keira and Clark Kent were raised by Jonathan and Martha when they found two alien orphans in a Kansas cornfield, instead of just one.
• Portal Network: Kara repurposes the phantom drive of her pod into a wormhole projector to link up with the wormhole projector in the Fortress, allowing Clark and Keira to travel instantly between the Kent barn cellar and the Fortress.
• Power Perversion Potential: Several alternate uses for Kryptonian powers are explored.
  • Clark’s super-stamina means he can go as often as he wants with no cooldown in-between. Physically, at least; after Lana first gives him oral sex, he has to take a mental break to process what just happened.
  • Clark and Kara's super-speed is also quite useful. Clark can move his hips so fast that "every part of him" is everywhere in his partner simultaneously, generating an impossible amount of friction that creates irresistible pleasure. Keira can engage super-speed in just her tongue to effectively turn it into a vibrator.
  • Discussed and defied with X-Ray vision. When Clark first reveals he has the power to Lana, she crosses her arms over her chest. Clark reassures her that it doesn't quite work that way, and while he could make it work that way, it takes a lot of concentration and focus, and he never would use it to peep.
• Properly Paranoid: Lena Luthor has a transmitter concealed in her wristwatch that connects directly to Luthorcorp private security. When armed robbers attack a Luthorcorp Christmas party at the Smallville plant, Lena surreptitiously triggers it, security has the building surrounded in minutes.
  Lex: Paranoia doesn't just run in our family, it gallops.
• Property of Love: The reason Kara is Kara Zor-El instead of Kara-El, more or less. In this version of Kryptonian society, females have their father's name as a surname until they are married, when they take their husband's name as a surname. This is an artifact from Krypton's ancient times, when women were actually property of their fathers until they became property of their husbands. The idea has been refined, and there's a code of ethics, responsibilities, and conduct on both sides. When Jor-El’s AI guides Lana to the crystal where Lara explains this, Lana decides she likes the idea of becoming "Lana Kal-El," marking her as belonging to Clark, and he to her. When Diana asks how same-sex couples fit into this custom, Kara admits "Not neatly." Faora-Ul calls it an "objectifying tradition" and thinks of "Faora Hu-Ul" as a "slave name." Cir-El also doesn't bow to the convention, though it's implied that's because her mother is Lois Lane, a strongly independent and free-thinking woman in nearly every continuity.
• Really 700 Years Old: Diana tries to be cagey about her age, but lets slip that she's approximately 3,000 years old. She left Themyscira sometime in World War I, and has been making her way in Man's World ever since.
• Running Gag: In Chapter 27, time-traveling Cir-El states she can't say anything about the future for fear of disrupting it. . . then starts volunteering information before stopping herself, glaring at the person who made the comment that started her talking, and telling them "Stop it!"
• Sex God:
  • With their powers (see Power Perversion Potential) and a little practice, Clark and Keira both become this.
  • Diana is 3,000 years old, and thus has incredible experience in many different fields, including sex. Diana is so good that Lana, who isn't even sure if she likes girls or not, is overwhelmed by how skillful a lover Diana is.
• Sexy Surfacing Shot: The introduction of Lori Lemaris is naturally described as one of these, emerging from the pool after winning a swim meet for Metropolis University.
• Shout-Out:
  • Lex's quip about "paranoia doesn't just run in our family, it gallops" was also said by Owen Deathstalker.
  • When Keira insists that Clark was not himself while under the effects of "nerve gas" (actually Red Kryptonite) to Lex, Lex replies "In Vino Veritas," implying he believes Clark's inhibitions were simply lowered so he could say what he really thought of Lena. Keira retorts "Credat Judaeus Apella, non ego," effectively stating she doesn't believe that. Lex asks Keira if she speaks Latin, or is just a fan of Tombstone.
  • When Kara is musing about the damage she might be able to cause with her pelvic muscles, and not getting why Clark does not find the topic amusing, Lana says she'll show Kara Teeth to explain how guys can have some fear of "girl parts."
  • When Kara is hollering commands to try and get The Eradicator to stand down, and it seems to be ignoring them, Clark tries "Klaatu Barada Nikto." Kara can't believe he thought it would work.
• Technobabble: Kara and Cir-El discuss time travel by tossing around phrases like "Shon-El's fifth hypertime postulate," "Kal-Ur's superstring vibration proofs," and "Zor-El's eleventh fifth dimensionality hypothesis," all of which are completely fictional, mean nothing to the audience, and aren't elaborated on, keeping the precise workings of time travel vague.
• Their First Time: When Clark comes clean to Lana about who and what he is, she’s disappointed that she and Clark can’t have a first time together. Clark suggests the Blue Kryptonite bracelet, but Lana wants to show she loves and accepts all of who Clark is, so decides instead to make Kal and Kara's "training" a group activity at the Fortress. And Kara manages to help Lana and Clark have something of a "first time," having Lana give Clark oral sex as part of cementing his control over his heat vision.
• Timey-Wimey Ball: In so many words. Cir-El, explaining as best she can how time travel works, eventually lets her explanation trail off, with Clark supplying the Tenth Doctor's famous explanation. The general idea is that the specific method one uses to travel in time affects how they can affect the future, and if the timeline they are in will change or if they will be shunted into an alternate universe where what they were trying to achieve already happened. But the specific rules are all left rather deliberately vague.
• Villains Want Mercy: Combined with O.O.C. Is Serious Business. As Kara prepares to send a defeated and depowered Faora-Ul back to the Phantom Zone, she begs and pleads for any other fate, including execution. Kal decides to hand her over to the DEO instead. Upon meeting her, Jeremiah declares that Faora is obviously far to proud to beg, but Kal notes that when it comes to being sent back to the Phantom Zone, that is not true.

---