If you're interested, I put together a spoiler-free version of my
Pinterest board with reference images for a bunch of characters.
In case you missed it…
Part One Part Two Part Three Operation ArgusPart 4
Over the course of the weekend, Lois tried to immerse herself in the Superman interview tapes, searching for anything else that might help her make sense of things. This was easy enough to do while Richard was at the Planet on Saturday helping to finalize the Sunday international edition, when she could sit outside with the headphones on and watch Jason playing in the yard. But once he was home, it was Family Time with their usual Saturday evening movie and take-out, and then Sunday they were going to her sister’s home for most of the day. Luckily, the TV was always turned on mute in the Troupe household, and old habit of Ron’s that Lucy had never managed to break. So Lois was able to pick up on the sudden increase of Superman appearances that began on Saturday. On an otherwise slow news day, the broadcasters were having a field day tracking his movements. Richard caught her watching at one point with a look of disgust as some middle-aged frat boy tried to sound like an expert on Superman with statistics about his abilities, most of which he got wrong.
By Monday morning, she was practically vibrating with the need to get back to work. But she reminded herself that she had other ongoing investigations, too, and started mentally reviewing her task list for the week as she drove her son to kindergarten.
“Mommy, you’re mummering again.”
“Sorry, baby.” Lois glanced up to catch her son’s bright blue eyes in the rear view mirror. “I’m just thinking about everything to do at work today.”
“Won’t be as much fun as I have at school!” Jason crowed in his car seat. Lois shook her head and wondered how she’d ever given birth to a child who was so cheerful in the mornings.
Once in the Daily Planet bullpen, Lois booted up her computer and quickly started typing her handwritten notes. She wanted to have an outline ready by Perry’s morning staff meeting so she could get moving on investigating this new Argus system and Superman’s role in it.
When she saw her favorite research assistant, Stephanie Sagel, within calling distance, she waved her over. The tall redhead had only been in the office a few months, but she’d already proven herself to be a hard worker. She’d just completed a degree in journalism from Met U, and her budding reporting instincts showed in the profiles she would put together. She frequently took the initiative to find more information than asked for. Even better, she was a proficient computer whiz and could crack into just about any system online, giving her access to all sorts of background material that provided strong leads for investigations. Lois once teased Jimmy, in Stephanie’s presence, that if he’d been as good during his research assistant days they’d never have allowed him to move into photography. Since then, Stephanie was as good as Lois’s personal assistant.
“Stephanie, I want you to start looking for anyone with some connection to this Argus system. Start with General Newcomb and, oh, what was that physicist’s name… I think it was Dr. Goodman, check the notes on Friday’s press conference.”
“No problem, Ms. Lane.” Stephanie smiled and jotted down the names. “Just the names of people, or do you want background info?”
“Just give me the basic profile for now, I’ll let you know if I need a more in depth look at anyone. Oh, and can you bring up a couple of my file boxes from the morgue? Here,” she snatched Stephanie’s notebook and jotted down the dates she needed, “there should be two or three boxes down there from this time period tagged with SM.”
“I’m on it.”
“Lois!!!”Time for the staff meeting. Stephanie gave her a look of sympathy before darting toward the elevator lobby to retrieve the boxes. Lois hit the print button for her existing outline and grabbed it from the printer on her way to the conference room. Just before entering, Richard caught her and gave her a quick peck on the cheek. “Good morning.”
“Morning,” she replied before slipping inside. As per usual, Richard had left before she was even awake in order to get some time in the office that overlapped with their international bureaus. She felt a bit bad about not stopping to say hello when she arrived, but it had been more important to organize all her thoughts before the meeting.
She slipped into a chair and knew Richard was standing behind her, perched on the edge of a cabinet. There was the usual Monday morning chatter as people asked about weekends, and Perry waved his arms to get everyone’s attention over the din.
“All right, everybody, let’s get to work. Great job on the Superman coverage, our Sunday sales broke a 4 year record.” He allowed a few moments of applause before scowling. “But we’re still missing that scoop that can really make the front page sing! In particular,” Perry looked directly at Lois, “the one-on-one interview that we know the world is expecting from the Daily Planet.”
Lois rolled her eyes. “Perry, I can’t just pull a Superman interview out of thin air, the man has to stop and talk to me for that.”
“And how did scaring him off at the press conference Friday help you with that goal?”
She jolted in her seat and pulled her shoulders back, eyes flashing. She briefly felt Richard’s hand on her shoulder and shrugged him off roughly. “I did no such thing. You know Superman can take flight at any moment.”
Perry gave her a skeptical look. “Fine, prove it to me with a world class interview. Every other newspaper in Metropolis has got a good-looking woman stationed on their roof to get his attention. With your history, it shouldn’t be
that hard to get him to stay put for a few minutes.”
Lois’s felt her face burning. “I have much better things to do than dance around on the roof trying to attract his attention, and I can’t believe you’d even suggest it.”
“I don’t care how you get the interview, just get one!” Perry barked, then mercifully moved on to the rest of the staff. “Diane, I want Features to put together a review of Superman’s biggest saves from before he disappeared. Get Karla to pair it up with some reactions to his return in Society. Business, any impact on the markets that can be linked to him? Ron, nice sidebar on Argus comparing it with prior defense systems. But I want to know why the hell some backwater General made the announcement and not President Garner in the Rose Garden. And how is it being paid for? Richard, international response to the US building a global defense system. And Kyle, keep on this program like ticks on a hunting dog, if there’s something to know about Argus, we want to print it.”
“Perry,” Lois interrupted, “I’m already working on background for Argus.” She smiled apologetically at Cavanaugh. “Something doesn’t smell right.”
“Lois, you can’t right squat about national defense or science and technology, Kyle’s our man for this one.”
“Chief, it doesn’t make sense! Why would Superman’s first task back on Earth be to team up with the US Army on some big budget defense program? There’s something else going on here!” She stretched across the table to hand him her outline. “You said it yourself, why would some General be making this announcement? It was a perfect PR opportunity for Garner to be photographed with Superman and take credit for defending the whole frickin' world, why the distance?”
Perry read over it briefly, then looked back up with narrowed eyes. “What about your investigation into Deputy Mayor Gray?”
“I’ve got a strong lead on it, and if it pans out the story will be wrapped up by the end of the week.”
“Weapons smuggling ring?”
“Brick wall, though I’ve asked to be kept in the loop if anything new happens.”
Perry switched his gaze to Cavanaugh. “How far are you on Argus?”
“I’ve reached out to the DOD and some friends in defense contracting to see what I can sniff out.” He shrugged. “Haven’t done much on the Superman angle, though.”
“All right, both of you work on it -“
“Perry, you
know I don’t work with a partner any-“
He turned a finger on her. “Lois, you focus on the Superman cooperation angle, Kyle will take defense, just coordinate on where you overlap.”
Lois nodded sharply and tried not to glare at Cavanaugh as Perry continued the meeting. She had nothing against the guy - she just didn’t work well with a partner. At best, she would take Jimmy as backup on stories, but their roles were clear - she did the writing, he did the photos and called in the cavalry if she got too far into trouble.
Then again, Cavanaugh had been smart enough to loop her in on the Friday conference. She could probably work around him if need be.
After the staff meeting, she hung back to speak briefly with Cavanaugh and shooed Richard back to his office when he hesitated to leave. She promised to email her outline over to Cavanaugh and fill him in on any info she might find while tracking down Superman’s specific role in the project. He sounded confident he could get some information out of his DOD sources, though in Lois’s experience she didn’t expect them to be all that organized on it yet. Maybe he’d have better luck with the contractors, since they’d be working on proposals to submit on the actual work.
Back at her desk, Lois found the boxes she’d asked Stephanie to retrieve neatly stacked just out of the walkway. There were actually four boxes for the dates she’d specified. She found what she needed in the third box, a slim address book with the names and contact information of people who regularly interacted with Superman. She wanted the names of the scientists in particular, and settled in for a morning of phone calls.
“This is Lois Lane from the Daily Planet, I’d like to speak with Dr. Stephen Daitch please… oh, I see, when did he retire? … Do you have a forwarding address or a recent phone number? … No, that’s all right, thank you.”
Strike one.
“Good morning, Dr. Faulkner, this is Lois Lane -”
“Lois? I was wondering how long it would take you to call! It’s been too long.”“Yes, it has, Doctor. But then, I guess you know why I’m calling.”
“Oh, of course. But I haven’t seen him at all. It’s not that unusual, I doubt he’d fly in just for a hello.”“Actually, I have a couple of related questions for you, too.”
“Sure, anything I can help you with. Though you’re aware of the confidentiality limits.”“Of course, Dr. Faulkner. This is pretty general. I just wanted to know if, before he left for Krypton,” she couldn’t help grimacing, “Superman ever shared any technical or medical information with you.”
“He was always very careful about that, Lois. The only information he ever disclosed was for very specific purposes, or to verify other information we already had.”“Did he ever share anything that could be used for any sort of weaponry or defense system?”
“Absolutely not. The information he shared was of the type to help solve medical problems or to analyze another wild invention - I think you remember some of those pretty well.”“Yes, I do. Final question, based on his prior behavior, what do you expect Superman to contribute to the Argus defense system?”
The phone was silent for a long moment.
“I suppose he might offer information to help them develop threat assessments. However…” She paused again.
“It’s really difficult for me to speculate. This is… a very different project than Superman ever collaborated with me on.”“I see. Well, thank you.”
“Lois, we really should get together at some point to catch up. Are you busy this weekend?”Lois hesitated before responding - was this a simple social invitation, or was Dr. Faulkner implying she had more to say away from inquisitive ears? “I was thinking about spending Saturday with my son at Centennial Park, but I could adjust that.”
“Oh, no, don’t do that! Why don’t I meet you there? I’d love to see your son again, anyway.”Yep, she wanted to meet privately. Dr. Faulkner had never met Jason. “All right, why don’t you meet us by the carousel at 1:00?”
“Perfect, I’ll see you then. Thanks, Lois.”“Bye, Karen.”
Hanging up the phone, Lois jotted down a few extra notes on her pad. The discussion had gone as she expected it to until the end - what could Dr. Faulkner have that she couldn’t talk about on the phone?
Sighing and trying to push aside that minor mystery, Lois continued working her way through her list. Dr. Emil Hamilton no longer worked for Cadmus Laboratories, and they had no forwarding information for him. Dr. Tom Kehiyashi said pretty much the same thing Dr. Faulkner, though without the mysterious undertone. He speculated that Superman might contribute some new way to use solar energy to power the defense system. Dr. Bernard Klein’s assistant at STAR Labs told her he was in the middle of a delicate experiment, and would she call back in 20 minutes? Dr. Rebecca Platt in EPRAD was unavailable, and Lois left a brief message asking her to call back, then made a note to try again later this week if she didn’t hear anything.
It was time to call Joanna anyway. She called the cell phone number and wasn’t surprised when it was picked up quickly.
“Hello?”“Hi, Joanna, it’s Lois.”
“Oh, hello, Dr. Peters! Just give me a minute to find someplace quiet.” Lois heard Joanna excuse herself from her colleagues and waited for her to speak again.
“All right, this should work. You know the contract proposals I told you about Friday?”“The Bell Ridge development project, with a proposal from Church Construction & Demolition.”
“Right. Well, the proposals are due for approval on Thursday morning, and Gray’s calendar has a private meeting scheduled for Wednesday evening, just as we expected.”Lois imagined herself cheering. “What time do you think he’ll be leaving?”
“His calendar is blocked out from 5:30 to 7:30. End of the day staff meeting is at 5:00, and he has a reception to be at by 7:30.”“Thanks, Joanna. You’re sure no one’s onto you, right?”
“I’m being very careful, Lois. Hardest part will be getting a copy of the supposedly-revised proposal Wednesday evening, but usually everyone clears out once Gray does, so I’m hoping that won’t be too hard.”“Joanna, if you’re not comfortable getting the copy -“
“I’ll get it, Lois. We have to have a comparison to prove he swapped it out with something different.”“All right. Call me if you need anything.”
“Thanks.”Lois marked off Wednesday evening for a stake out, then tried STAR Labs again, this time reaching Dr. Klein.
“Hi, Bernie, it’s Lois.”
“Lois! What can I do for you today? No, wait, let me guess, it has something to do with that superhero around town, gosh, what’s his name again…”Lois chuckled at the self-mockery. “Yeah, I’m calling about Superman. Nothing complicated this time, not even any toys for you to break.”
“You’re always welcome to bring me new toys, Lois. So what can I tell you about Superman today?”“Well, first off, have you seen him since he came back?”
“Sadly, no. I would love to ask him about his trip to Krypton, must be absolutely fascinating, especially how he managed to get around relativity and travel so quickly. I wonder if he’d let me see his spaceship?”“I don’t know, Bernie, do you think he would?”
“Probably not, he’s never shown me anything else using Kryptonian technology. Then again, he never teamed up with the military to develop a defense system before, either.”“So that surprised you?”
“You bet it surprised me! I dropped a beaker of acid when I heard that on the television, just barely missed my foot, that would have been very uncomfortable if it had burned through my shoe. Luckily my assistant had a base solvent nearby and was able to neutralize it before burning much more than the linoleum.”“Can you tell me why it’s so surprising that Superman would help with a defense system for the Earth?”
“I asked him about that, once, about all the technology his people must have had. He explained it was against his laws to share any technology more advanced than we already have, sounded like something out of Star Trek to be honest, and that he was still bound by them. I guess I can see the logic behind it, but I was very disappointed. Just imagine all of the wonders that Superman must know about!”“So Superman never shared any technological information with you?”
“Only if it was something we’d mostly worked out ourselves anyway. He’d give little hints here and there, especially if the conclusion we’d come to on something was dangerous - at the very least he’d tell us, ‘No, don’t do it that way, it’ll blow up half the lab’ and stuff like that.”Lois nearly choked at the mental image of Superman standing over the STAR Labs scientists like an elderly schoolteacher, shaking his finger at them. “Then what kind of cooperation do you think he can give the military on Argus?”
“If he’s still following the same code as before? Practically nothing, he’d be little more than a hood element, or maybe could help with some tests, but nothing to do with design and development. But what worries me is if they’ve convinced him to break those rules he’d set for himself.”“Why does it worry you, Bernie?”
“Because this is exactly the sort of scenario that those rules were meant to prevent.” Dr. Klein’s voice became unusually solemn.
“The nuclear arms race was bad enough, but at least with MAD there was always a counterbalance to anyone having too much power. But if the US army is in control of a weapons system designed with Kryptonian technology, how can anyone hope to counter it? A global defense system wouldn’t be limited to threats from outer space.”“You don’t really think Superman would give them something like that, do you?”
“Oh, no, Lois, not really. I’m just using the worst case scenario to demonstrate why his rules are so important. I’m sure the military will be trying to push for that sort of cooperation, but I just can’t imagine Superman has changed so much in a few short years. After all, he’s jumped right back into rescues and protecting those weaker than himself. It’s good to have him home, isn’t it, Lois?”“Well, yes. Though it’d be nice if he’d stand still long enough for someone to talk to him.”
“That someone being you, Lois?” Dr. Klein’s laugh sounded just a little too smug.
“Well, I can’t blame you. Like I said before, I would love to chat with him again. If you see him before I do, can you tell him STAR Labs keeps its doors open to him?”“I will, Bernie. Thanks for answering my questions, and tell Carolyn I said hello.”
“Anytime, Lois, any- hey, don’t touch -“The line cut off and Lois hung it up while shaking her head. Dr. Klein took “absent-minded professor” to a new level, but he was absolutely brilliant and a wonderful friend. But his concerns about what Argus could become chilled Lois before she shrugged off the feeling of dread. Dr. Klein was right, Superman wouldn’t in good conscience give the US army that sort of firepower.
Well, she had some good quotes for the start of a speculative column, but nothing hard hitting, and certainly nothing to help her track down Superman. She was particularly hopeful to speak with Dr. Platt or Dr. Daitch to also ask what they thought about his claim to have traveled to Krypton. After a moment’s thought, she fired off an e-mail to Stephanie asking her to start looking for any information about new planets discovered in 2001. At the very least it might give her some new leads into who the astronomers were that Superman referred to.
Looking at the clock, Lois was tempted to take an early lunch. She’d been sitting in her chair too long, and there wasn’t any new information for her to work with yet until Stephanie got back to her with the Argus affiliates. Then her eye caught the boxes, and she realized there might not be new information, but the old information drew her like a moth to the flame.
She’d packed up all of her Superman files in the spring of 2002, when it was clear that Superman was gone for the foreseeable future, and hadn’t looked back since. It had been like cutting smoking cold-turkey, though in some ways quitting smoking had been easier. She’d pored over everything she had for months on end, desperate to find any clue as to where Superman might have gone. So shifting away from the materials was difficult, but even worse was the admission that if she couldn’t even find Superman… then she had no hope of finding Clark Kent, either.
Wondering if it was such a good idea, Lois reached out to one of the boxes and thumbed through the file folders. But just before she pulled one out, the phone on her desk rang. A strange emotion surged through her as she abandoned the box, part relief, part annoyance, and part sorrow.
She cleared her throat before speaking. “Lois Lane, Daily Planet.”
“Lane, it’s Henderson. We’ve picked up another shipment.”She nearly fell out of her chair as she reached for her notebook. “More weapons?”
“Yep. And we even picked up one of the delivery men, though we haven’t gotten much out of him yet.”“Do you think he knows anything?”
“Too early to tell. Stop by here later this afternoon, I’ll fill you in.”“Aww, it’s so sweet of you to invite me over.”
“Cut it out, Lane. Bad enough I have to keep you looped in, that doesn’t mean I have to like you, too.”“You keep telling yourself that, Bill. I’ll see you this afternoon.” She hung up with a smirk before he could answer. She and Bill Henderson may have gotten past their initial animus years ago, but it was always fun to poke at him.
Looking at the clock again, Lois groaned. She just
had to get out of the bullpen, her desk was starting to feel claustrophobic. Maybe she could convince Richard -
“Lois, big demolition accident down on Stratus Avenue!” Jimmy Olsen was running past, swinging a camera bag onto his shoulder. “Superman’s been sighted there!”
Lois leapt up and chased after Jimmy, and thanked the universe for exactly what she needed right then.
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