Jor-El looked from his balcony over his hometown, possibly for the last time. He had attempted, in vain, to convince the Science Council of Krypton's impending destruction. His words had fallen on deaf ears. They ridiculed him and laughed him off the Council.
Lara, his loving wife, approached from behind. "Is it ready?"
"Yes, it's finally ready, and just in time," he replied.
"Are you sure this planet, what was it called?"
"Earth"
"Earth. Are you sure this Earth will be a safe place for him?"
Jor-El sighed. How could anyone be sure of anything anymore?
He replied, "The atmosphere is breathable. The gravity is a bit less than on Krypton. The dominant species on the planet have strikingly similar features to our own. He can blend in as one of them."
"What about the sun? You seemed concerned about the yellow sun that orbits the planet," she asked, with a bit of trepidation in her voice. "Are you certain it won't harm him?"
"I'm as sure as I can be. I've run all the tests as I can, and I'm fairly certain that he won't come to any harm. I'm not sure how prolonged exposure will affect him," he hesitated. "But it's our best bet."
"Oh, Jor, What will become of him, without his parents?"
"I don't know, Lara," Jor-El said. "We can only hope someone will find his ship, and raise him to be a good person."
Jor-El embraced his wife. He had been preparing for this for man months. He knew there was no hope for his planet, but he couldn't stand the thought of his son never growing up to become the man he knew he could be. He prepared a ship, large enough to carry his newborn son, to a planet far away. He didn't have the time to make preparations for he or Lara to escape. He scoured the cosmos for a suitable planet. With his limited time, he was only able to find one that had a suitable environment, and inhabited by an intelligent species in which he might assimilate.
Despite his preparations, now that the moment was here, he wasn't sure that he could do it. How could he send his only son out into the heavens, with so much uncertainty about what might befall him? But then, he thought, how could he not? How could he keep his dear little Kal-El on a doomed planet, where he would certainly die?
Lara wiped the tear from his eye (had he been crying?) and said, "Let's get Kal."
Together, they walked into Kal-El's nursery, to find their sweet baby peacefully sleeping. Jor-El picked up his son, wrapped in a blanket which bore his family's crest, the Kryptonian symbol for hope.
Jor-El carried his son into his lab, and placed him in the ship. It would automatically carry him through a wormhole and land on Earth. Jor-El programmed it to seek out an area of population, in hopes that a loving family would find Kal-El and care for him.
Lara bent down and kissed her son goodbye. Lara was a strong woman, but not strong enough to hold back her tears. Jor-El put his arm around his wife as the ship closed, and the ceiling opened. They watched as their only son blasted off into the atmosphere, and beyond. They watched well after his ship was gone beyond their sight.
They had a few hours left before the tremors would begin. Those tremors would conclude with their entire planet ripping itself apart. But at this moment, none of that mattered to them. They stood there, in each other's arms, and waited for their world to end.