Absolute Superman #8 (2025)

In Metropolis Ra's al Ghul conducts an earnings call with Lazarus Corp's "League of Shareholders" while fighting off a squad of Omega Men assassins. He pushes one of them into a Lazarus Pit, de-aging them into a baby, and kills the others with his bare hands. He tells the shareholders that Lazarus' planned day of resurrection is at hand and ends the call by dropping the now infant assassin from the top of Lazarus Corp's skyscraper headquarters. Superman sneaks into Martha Kent's retirement home in Smallville in the middle of the night. He tells her about his travels and places some seashells he brought her on her nightstand, as she had once told him she wished she could see all five oceans. Martha wakes up and doesn't recognise him due to her Alzheimer's. She starts calling for help and Kal-El runs away. He walks down Smallville's main street, where all the businesses have been either shut down or purchased by Lazarus Corp. Jimmy Olsen and Lois Lane each approach him outside the movie theatre and ask to speak to him, but he says he wants to be left alone and isn't interested in anything they have to say. Jimmy and Lois start arguing and Superman disappears while they are distracted. Lois calls out to him, saying that she knows he keeps coming back to Smallville as miraculous rescues and lucky escapes have been recorded in the town. Jimmy attacks her for what Lazarus has done to Smallville and they argue again. Sol advises Kal-El not to get involved and simply leave, but he floods the street with Sunstone dust and flies down in front of them. He yells at them that he came to Smallville to try to stop himself form killing Smith but he suddenly collapses, shot in the chest. A force of Peacemakers descend from helicopters and Jimmy turns to point his gun at Lois, believing she lead them there. Lois levels her own gun at him and denies having anything to do with it. She tells him that they don't agree on anything, but if they don't work together to get Superman to safety now, he will die and they will regret it forever. The two of them drag him into a nearby drugstore. The Peacemakers find the blood trail and move to start searching nearby buildings but Smith, now a captain and heavily augmented with cybernetics, orders them to secure a perimeter while he searches building by building for Superman alone. In the drug store, Sol struggles to extract the bullet, and discovers that its composition matches that of Krypton. Jimmy says he can get Superman out to join the Omega Men, but before he can do anything Smith smashes through the wall and attacks. Superman fights back, but with the bullet still poisoning him and draining his powers Smith is able to overpower him with his new strength. Both Lois and Jimmy run in to defend him and the Peacemakers arrive to back up Smith. Lois tells them to arrest Smith for his massacre in Pakistan, but they say she is the one who will be imprisoned of she doesn't stand down. The people of Smallville show up armed with rifles and order the Peacemakers to get out of their town. One of the Peacemakers tells Smith they should just grab Superman and leave but Smith grabs him by the throat and refuses, saying nobody tells him how to keep the peace. Superman activates his armour's "Tornado Mode", changing it to a battle configuration and unlocking the solar energy reserves to restore his powers. He summons a powerful wind of Sunstone to scatter the Peacemakers and Smallville residents, then punches Smith a thousand times at super-speed to bring him down. Injured, Smith laughs at Superman for being afraid of his own rage and power, then shoots Kal-El with multiple radioactive bullets. Sol is unable to maintain the armour and the tornado collapses. Kal-El still tries to fight back, but he is too weak and Smith easily knocks him to the ground. He moves in for the kill but Brainiac remotely shuts him down as Ra's al Ghul wants Superman taken alive. With Superman near death he asks Jimmy to get him out of there. Jimmy calls in a boom Tube and the Omega Men and Primus rush out to save them just as the Peacemakers rally and charge. The Omega Men hold the Peacemakers off and carry Superman through the Boom Tube, but Primus refuses to let Lois follow. The portal closes and the angry Peacemakers surround Lois.