Original Air Date on January 25th, 2007

[Clark is in the barn, fixing the wheel on the tractor.]

Clark: There we go. Well, Shelby, what do you say we call it a night, huh? Shelby? Your friend Chloe's gonna be here any minute. Any minute. Thanks for your help, buddy.

[Shelby starts to growl, then runs up to the loft, and Clark follows.]

Clark: Shelby? [ Shelby continues barking ] Shelby, what is it? Shelby?

[Shelby won't stop growling.]

Clark: What's wrong, boy? You see something I don't?

[Clark is att*cked from behind, and is thrown over the railing of the loft to the barn floor below. When he lands, he opens his eyes to find himself in a mental hospital, with a group of patients around him.]

Arthur: [ Singsong voice ] Clark. [ Normal voice ] Earth to superfreak.

[Laughter]

Dr. Hudson: Everyone, please, sit down. Are you still with us, Clark?

Clark: What's going on?

Dr. Hudson: Well, you said that you and your dog were in the barn when you heard something. And then you left us for a bit.

Clark: What are you talking about? How'd I get here?

Arthur: So, what att*cked you? Was it a Kryptofreak again? [ Laughs ]

Victor: No, no, no, I know. It was a spirit from the Phantom Zone, right, Kal-El?

Clark: How do you know that name?

Victor: 'Cause you never shut up about it, oh, great son of Jor-El.

Dr. Hudson: Settle down, gentlemen.

Clark: Wait, back off!

Dr. Hudson: Take it easy, Clark. Take those deep breaths we talked about.

Clark: Who are you?

Dr. Hudson: It's me ... Dr. Hudson.

[Two burly orderlies grab onto Clark from behind.]

Clark: Hold on. I don't want to have to hurt anyone.

Arthur: Why don't you just use your superspeed and run away?

[Clark tries to overpower the two guards but is unable to - he has no powers.]

Clark: What? Why are you doing this to me? What do you want? What's happening?! Let me go! Let me go! Please, someone! Why am I here?! [ Screaming ]

[Clark continues to scream as they drag him away, down a long hallway. ]

[Clark is inside a locked room with bars on the window. ]

Clark: I don't belong in here! I'm not crazy. I don't belong here.

Guards: Back away from the door. [ Clark tries to overpower the guards but is unable to ] Back away from the door!

Clark: How'd I get here?

Dr. Hudson: Think back, Clark. You know how that happened.

Clark: Someone or something att*cked me in my barn. This is 33.1 ... It's Lex. He's always wanted to get me under his microscope.

Dr. Hudson: I'm afraid your obsession with Lex Luthor is part of the fantasy world that you created after you experienced your psychotic break.

Clark: Oh, I get it. You want me to think I'm crazy.

Dr. Hudson: I would prefer not to use pejoratives. You suffer from paranoid schizophrenia. You have for a number of years ... after the death of your birth parents in the Smallville meteor shower.

Clark: See, it's not true. My birth parents were out of town for the meteor shower.

Dr. Hudson: You were placed in the wonderful adoptive home of the Kents. But like many children, you invented a make-believe world to help you deal with the trauma you endured. You convinced yourself that you came from another planet, that you possessed special powers and you used them to save humanity.

Clark: Whatever you're trying to do, it's not gonna work.

Dr. Hudson: An active imagination wasn't a problem when you were a boy. But when you entered your freshman year at high school, you slipped permanently into your fantasy world.

Clark: If you're gonna play mind games, you got to try harder.

Dr. Hudson: This isn't a game, Clark. You're sick. And your condition is getting worse. But the good news is, I have developed a new treatment that will cure you.

Clark: Tell Lex that I don't buy it.

Dr. Hudson: Lex isn't your nemesis. And 33.1 doesn't exist. For the last 5 1/2 years, you've been a resident of the Fairview Psychiatric Hospital. Everything else ... your superpowers, your alien lineage, your secret identity ... it's all a delusion.

[Knocks on door]

[Indistinct conversations]

Arthur: Hey, stop licking the ball ... it's cheating.

[Buzzer buzzes ]

Woman on the intercom: Time for medication.

Orderly: All right, let's go. Keep on moving. Keep on moving. That means you, too. Let's go.

Nurse: Don't hide that pill under your tongue. Swallow it.

[As Clark stands in line, a man speaks over his shoulder from behind.]

John: You're not crazy, Kal-El. We don't have much time, so listen to me closely. I believe you're from another planet.

Clark: What makes you say that?

John: Because like you, I'm not from here. I come from mars. You can't trust anyone.

[The man is seized by two more orderlies who inject him with something that knocks him to his knees.]

Clark: Hey!

Orderly: Don't even think about it.

[They drag the man away before he can say anything more. As they drag him away, Clark makes his way into an adjoining hallway and knocks out a janitor. Next we see Clark, wearing the janitor's uniform and a baseball cap, walking towards the exit. Once he reaches the outside, he ditches the cap and runs.]

[Clark arrives home, searching for his mom. Instead he finds Lana waiting for him in the loft.]

Clark: Mom? Mom!

Lana: Clark, you're home! I can't believe it!

Clark: What are you doing here? What are all your things doing in the loft?

Lana: Clark, this is my home now. After your dad passed away, Nell and I bought the farm from your mom. [ She points at the telescope ] Not everything has changed. I kept this. You once said that looking through it brought me closer to you. And having it here makes me feel like you're always with me.

Clark: I don't understand.

Lana: I know. This must be really hard for you. You've been gone a long time and a lot has changed. But none of that matters anymore. Freshman year, you promised me that we would never be apart. You were right.

Clark: We weren't dating then. You ... you were with Whitney.

Lana: The football jock? Clark ... there's only one person I've ever been in love with ... you. It's okay. The doctor said that you'd suffer mild amnesia after the treatment.

Clark: What treatment? I didn't have any treatment.

Lana: But you were released from the hospital.

Clark: I wasn't released. I escaped. Lex Luthor put me in that hellhole.

Lana: Lex didn't put you in there.

Clark: No! That's not right! I don't care if you two are engaged ... stop protecting him!

Lana: I hardly know Lex Luthor. I'm gonna call the hospital.

Clark: No, stop. You're lying. You're in on this, aren't you? He sent you here! That's why you're here ... to distract me until he shows up.

Lana: Please stop.

Clark: What did Lex do with my mother? Where is she?!

Lana: She's probably at the mansion ... the Luthor mansion. Clark ...

[Clark walks into the mansion and finds Martha in the study.]

Clark: Mom? Thank god, you're okay.

Martha: Oh, Clark! Oh, I've been a wreck all day. Everyone at the hospital is so worried about you.

Clark: You knew I was in that place?

Martha: Dr. Hudson called Lionel the moment you disappeared. They've both been looking for you.

Clark: Lionel? He must be in on it. He must have told Lex the truth about me.

Martha: Clark, please, try to calm down.

Clark: Calm down? Mom, you don't understand. They put me in that asylum. They took away my powers.

Martha: No, sweetheart ... it'll be all right.

Clark: Mom, we have to get you out of here. We have to get you away from Lionel.

Martha: No, Clark. Lionel and I are married now. I-I meant to tell you, but I-I was afraid of how you'd react.

Clark: How could you?

Martha: He's a good, decent man. Lionel's made sure you've gotten better care than I could ever afford.

Clark: He's been lying to you!

Martha: No, Clark. Dr. Hudson's treatment will make you well again. Please, I just want my son back.

Clark: No, you're coming with me right now.

Martha: No, no, I ...

[Martha's purse drops to the floor, and a prescription bottle falls out. Clark picks it up and sees "Mrs. Martha Luthor" printed on the bottle.]

Clark: They're drugging you, too.

Martha: Clark, those are my allergy pills.

[Martha hits a button on the phone, causing an alarm to sound.]

Clark: What are you doing?

Martha: You need help, Clark.

Clark: Mom, you don't understand what's going on. You're coming with me.

Martha: No.

Clark: Right now!

Martha: No!

[Two guards rush in and try to subdue Clark.]

Clark: Come on! Mom! You have to ...

Martha: Please, don't hurt him!

[Clark fights with the guards but is able to get away from both of them, running outside.]

Guard: Stop! [ g*n ] There's nowhere to run, Mr. Kent. Just relax and put your hands behind you.

[As the guards catch up to him and pull a g*n on him, Clark sees a car stop nearby, opening the passenger door for him to escape into. Clark takes down the guard and runs to the car. The car takes off as the guards f*re several sh*ts.]

Clark: Chloe, how'd you find me?

Chloe: Are you kidding me? I've been in GPS mode ever since my contact I.M.'d me about the breakout this morning.

Clark: Look, I can't stay here. I don't want to get you involved.

Chloe: Clark, I already am involved. You think you're the only one whose life's been turned upside down by the Luthors? Why do you think I've been under the radar?

Clark: Chloe, they're after me, not you.

Chloe: They're after both of us. Now, don't ditch your sidekick till you get your powers back. You might need me to cover you.

Clark: I'm glad to see you, Chloe. I was beginning to think I was actually losing it.

Chloe: Chin up, Clark - once we get this thing on the front page, father and son Luthor are gonna be wearing matching orange jumpsuits.

Clark: Lex ... I gotta go see him.

Chloe: Wait a minute. You just got out, Clark. You're gonna go back into the devil's lair? Lex is more dangerous than ever right now.

Clark: Even more reason to stop him.

Chloe: No, Clark, you don't have your powers back. You could get hurt like everyone else.

Clark: Powers or no powers, I won't let him do this to me.

Chloe: All right, fine. Since your superspeed's out of gas, take my Yaris. And be careful.

Clark: Surprised to see me?

Lex: My father said you were out. I just never thought you'd have the nerve to show your face.

Clark: You may have taken my powers, Lex, but I'm not afraid of you. And I won't let you ruin my life.

Lex: Your ... your life. I think you have that a little backwards. Did you forget our little run-in on the Loeb Bridge five years ago?

Clark: When you save someone's life, you tend to remember.

Lex: You really think you saved me. Well, then, let me refresh your memory.

[Now Clark can see that Lex is confined to a wheel chair and when Lex wheels himself out from behind the desk, Clark can see he is missing both legs below the knee.]

Lex: I have to spend the rest of my life in this chair because of you.

Clark: This isn't possible. I was there ...

Lex: And you caused the accident! Oh, you claimed you saw my car swerving out of control, so you jumped in front of it to save me with your superpowers. But when I jerked the wheel, my Porsche flipped end over end and wrapped around the guard rail.

Clark: That's not what happened.

Lex: If it was up to me, you'd be rotting in jail. But my father insisted you go to that mental hospital instead. Anything to impress Martha Kent with his kindness.

Clark: This is a trick. It's a trick!

Lex: Really? Open your eyes, you crazy son of a bitch! Does this look like a trick to you?! If there's one thing I regret in my life ... it's that I didn't just run you over.

[Clark enters the Talon but the building is rundown and looks nothing like he remembers. He starts to look around when Lana enters through the front door.]

Lana: Clark. I knew you'd come here to see Chloe.

Clark: What happened to the coffee house?

Lana: Clark, this has been an abandoned movie theater for as long as I can remember.

Clark: No, this doesn't make sense. This can't be real. Lana, Lex said that I ... caused his accident. Is that true?

Lana: It's all in the past now. Clark, come back to the farm with me. We can get through this. We can get through anything.

Clark: None of this makes sense, Lana. And you and I ... we're not together anymore.

Lana: Ever since kindergarten, we've been together, Clark. [ She pulls out a tiny plastic ring and shows it to Clark ] Thought that this would help you to remember. It's from the gumball machine at Quinn's Market. You gave it to me when we were 10 years old. You said that it was my wedding ring. And when you put it on my finger and kissed me for the first time, that's when you stole my heart.

Clark: I don't remember.

Lana: You suffered so much in that hospital. Every weekend when I'd come to visit, I could see it in your eyes. I never gave up hope that you'd get better.

Clark: I don't know what's going on. But Chloe does. She knows who I am.

Lana: Clark, you shouldn't see her right now.

[Clark runs up stairs and finds Chloe in the apartment, which is also run down but appears to be where Chloe has been living.]

Clark: Chloe!

Chloe: Clark, thank God.

Clark: What's going on?

Chloe: We have to get out of her right now. Lex and his men took everything. They're trying to wipe me off the face of the earth.

Clark: You know, Lex is in a wheelchair.

Chloe: Clark, when it comes to the Luthors, you can't trust anything, okay? We gotta go subterranean until you get your powers back.

Clark: But, Chloe, I'm not so sure. Nothing's the way it's supposed to be. It all seems so crazy.

Chloe: We're not crazy. We're not crazy. We're just the only two that know the truth. That's why they put us in the mental institution.

[Lana walks into the apartment.]

Lana: I tried to tell you.

Chloe: What's she doing here?

Lana: Chloe was in Fairview with you.

Clark: You were in that place, too?

Chloe: They put me in that snake pit to shut me up.

Lana: You know that she has a family history of mental illness.

Chloe: Don't listen to her, Clark. She's just trying to confuse you.

Lana: Clark, please, just come with me. And I'll get you the help that you need.

Chloe: I should have known you'd never be able to resist her. You never could. If she's here, it means they're not far behind.

Clark: Chloe, hold on! Just stay here! We'll figure this out!

Chloe: There's nothing to figure out, Clark. I know who you really are, and they're gonna k*ll me for it. I have to go!

[Chloe runs down stairs but the guards from the Luthor mansion have followed them.]

Guard: Mr. Kent, just take it easy.

[Chloe reaches into her bag for a g*n but the guards are faster and before she can sh**t, one of the guards sh**t Chloe in the chest.]

Clark: Chloe? Chloe. Chloe!

[Clark catches Chloe as she falls.]

Chloe: [ Gasping ] Clark, I'm not crazy.

Clark: No. No! Chloe? Chloe?

[Chloe dies in Clark's arms.]

[Clark is back in the mental institution, confined in a straight-jacket.]

Clark: This can't be real. Chloe didn't die. No. She couldn't have.

Dr. Hudson: I'm sorry, Clark. I know how much you cared about your friend.

Clark: What the hell do you want from me?

Dr. Hudson: For you to have a happy, healthy life. And it will become a reality ... after this treatment.

Clark: I'm not gonna go through with it. I know who I am!

Dr. Hudson: I'm not sure you do. Your name is Clark Kent, not Kal-El. And Jor-El isn't your father.

[Dr. Hudson shows Clark a bottle of hand soap with the brand name of Jorel on it. Clark looks around the room, seeing a variety of names he recognizes, but with different associations: Arthur Curry and Victor Stone are fellow patients in the mental institution, The Fortress of Solitude is a book about prison life on his bookshelf, The Phantom Zone is a magazine on the coffee table, etc.]

[Intercom beeps ]

Woman on the intercom: Dr. Fine, Dr. Milton fine, please report to level three, stat.

Dr. Hudson: When the human mind has faced tremendous emotional pain, it has no choice but to protect itself. You've taken bits and pieces of your surroundings and created an alternate universe where you feel safe and secure. Clark ... in a world where you truly have no power, you chose to give yourself superpowers.

[A nurse enters and Clark can see her name badge: Raya.]

Raya: Good morning, doctor.

Dr. Hudson: Good morning, Raya. [ The doctor signs some forms ] That'll be all, Raya.

[Dr. Hudson picks up a large piece of Kryptonite from the desk, showing it to Clark who recoils at the sight of it.]

Clark: Chloe ... really is d*ad.

Dr. Hudson: I'm sorry, Clark. I'll get the treatment ready.

[The same patient who talked to Clark in the medication line speaks to Clark through the bars in their room doors.]

John: You can't give in, Kal-El. You must resist. None of this is real.

[Clark is laying on his bed, utterly dejected.]

Clark: Leave me alone.

John: Listen to me. When you were att*cked in the barn, you were infected by a being that you released from the Phantom Zone.

Clark: The Phantom Zone doesn't exist.

John: Yes, it does. And if you were a human, that spirit would have taken you over with ease, like Zod did with Lex Luthor. But you're a lot stronger than that. You're Kryptonian.

Clark: You're a patient in a mental hospital. You're just as crazy as I am.

John: If you give in to Hudson and undergo this treatment, the entity will gain control of your body with all its powers and unite the other fugitives from the Phantom Zone. Together, they'll enslave all of mankind.

Clark: If this is all in my head, then how are you here?

John: I'm in your mind as well, trying to help. But there's only one way to purge this parasite and regain your consciousness. You have to k*ll Hudson.

Clark: k*ll Hudson? I can't k*ll a man.

John: He's not a man. Hudson's a Phantom.

Clark: You told me not to trust anyone. Why should I trust you?

John: You know who you are, Kal-El. Trust yourself.

[Two guards come in to stop the conversation, striking the patient and bringing him to his knees. ]

Guard: Well, if it isn't our visitor from Mars.

[As he falls, the man grabs on to the bars in Clark's door for a last message.]

John: Look within. Believe in yourself. The future of mankind depends on it.

[One of the guards brings out a lighter, taunting him with it.]

Guard: Whoa, what's the matter, there, freak, huh? Scared of a little f*re? Isn't Mars the red-hot planet? Welcome home. [ The guard knocks him out ] Get him out of here. [ He turns to Clark ] It's time, Mr. Kent.

[Clark is marched into the room to have his "procedure" with Dr. Hudson, and Lana is standing there waiting for him.]

Lana: I didn't want you to go through this alone. Dr. Hudson said I could come. We're so close, Clark. You're gonna get better and we can finally be together. Like we were always meant to be.

Clark: I want you to be real.

Lana: I am real.

Lana: Okay. Let's say that I am a hallucination ... and that your world really does exist. I'm about to marry your greatest enemy. You're an alien from another planet who's responsible for so much tragedy. Do you really want to live in that reality?

Clark: I don't know what to believe anymore.

Lana: Don't you just want to take this treatment and be with me?

Clark: Of course I want to be with you ... more than you could ever imagine.

Lana: Then stop fighting, please. You've lived like this for so long, carried this burden of being a hero. It's time to just let go and live a normal life.

Clark: I've never been normal.

Lana: Your destiny isn't to save the world, Clark. It's to be with me for the rest of our lives.

[Lana kisses Clark on the cheek and Dr. Hudson comes into the room.]

Dr. Hudson: There's no need to be afraid, Clark. The procedure is quite painless.

[Clark is laid down a table, and a large drill starts up and starts moving slowly towards his temple.]

Dr. Hudson: It will be over in the blink of an eye.

[Clark shifts uncomfortably but does not put up much resistance.]

[Shelby barks]

Clark: Shelby? I'm still in the barn.

[Clark hears Shelby's barking and realizes that he is really still in the barn and starts to fight back.]

Dr. Hudson: Settle down, son.

[Barking]

Clark: I know who I am!

[Barking]

Orderly: Just relax, Mr. Kent, please.

Dr. Hudson: Clark, Stop it! You're having another episode. Think about Lana. You could be together at last.

[Barking continues]

[Clark escapes the grip of the two orderlies holding him down and knocks them out, then grabs Dr. Hudson around the throat.]

Clark: Get out of my mind!

[As Clark holds Dr. Hudson, his face changes into the form of a Phantom and we are transported back to the barn. The Martian Manhunter is standing over Clark with some sort of device which is extracting the Phantom from Clark's body, just as Clark is using his mind to eject the Phantom's presence. When it is finally gone, Clark gets to his feet slowly.]

Clark: It's you.

[Clark recognizes the man as the same one that saved him from the Phantom in Seattle. The man's eyes glow red.]

John: Welcome home, Kal-El.

[As Chloe runs into the barn, the Martian Manhunter flies out of the barn in a streak of red.]

Chloe: Clark? Clark, are you all right?

[Clark sees that Chloe is still alive and puts his arms around her, holding her very tightly.]

Chloe: Hey.

[Shelby panting at Clark's side.]

Clark: Shelby. Thanks, buddy, you saved my life.

[Barking]

Clark: You're sure I was only out for a second?

Chloe: I was walking from my car when I heard you fall, and by the time I got to the barn, you were on your feet.

Clark: It felt like a lifetime.

Chloe: I gotta give the Phantom props. Dangling the Lana carrot is a pretty tempting offer. But he clearly has never come across the steel will of Clark Kent.

Clark: Chloe, you don't understand. I almost gave up everything and everyone that I care about ... for Lana.

Chloe: Wait a second. Based on the pending nuptials, I thought Lana was past tense.

Clark: So did I. [ Sighs ] The truth is, I still love her.

[Chloe looks stricken at this.]

Chloe: I guess Kryptonite's not your only weakness. So, who was I in your alternate universe? Editor in Chief of the Daily Planet? Or a Pulitzer Prize winner, maybe?

[Clark can't bring himself to tell her the truth about being in the mental hospital with him.]

Clark: Something like that, yeah. The important part is ... you were the one person who believed in me. I don't know what I'd do without you, Chloe.

Chloe: Oh, is this when I'm supposed to cue the Barry Manilow music?

Clark: No, seriously. You mean a lot more to me than you know.

[Clark holds her gaze for a long moment, before she rolls her eyes - embarrassed, but brimming with emotion.]

[Clark enters the Talon and looks around, relieved to see it as he remembered. He sees Lana standing at the front counter and when she turns, their eyes meet and she walks towards him.]

Lana: You look like you've got something on your mind.

Clark: It's that obvious, huh?

Lana: You don't hide your feelings as well as you think.

Clark: How you doing? I mean, with ...

[He motions to the baby.]

Lana: Fine. Yeah, everything's fine.

Clark: Good.

Lana: So, are you gonna tell me? [ Clark looks at her, puzzled ] What was that look in your eye?

Clark: Oh, I ... [ He smiles but seems unsure of what to tell her ] I had a dream about you last night.

Lana: I hope that it wasn't a nightmare.

[He tells her about his dream in all earnestness, and she seems genuinely touched by the sentiment, and the honesty.]

Clark: No. We were 10 years old, and I gave you a plastic ring from a gumball machine at Quinn's Market.

Lana: Sweet. What was the occasion?

Clark: It was an engagement ring.

[She is clearly effected by this, and wants him to finish the story.]

Lana: What happened next?

Clark: I woke up.

[The hold a very long gaze before the front door opens and Lex walks in.]

Lex: Lana. I should have guessed your delay wasn't the herbal tea. [ They kiss ] Clark.

[Lex expects hostility from Clark but is surprised when Clark is genuinely sincere.]

Clark: It's good to see you out and about, Lex.

Lex: You know, you actually sounded convincing when you said that. I appreciate the civility. [ To Lana ] You ready to go? We don't want to keep the wedding planner waiting.

Lana: Yeah, we were just saying goodbye.

[As they leave, Lana looks back over her shoulder, holding Clark's gaze for a moment longer.]
{"type": "series", "show": "Smallville", "episode": "06x12 - Labyrinth"}