The Ides of Metropolis - Matchmaker Style
Rated PG-13
* * denotes emphasis
< > denotes thoughts
As always comments are welcome. (ken.janney@kjanney.com)
Previously:
Just then their conversation was interrupted by the door opening and a joyous Jonathan entering. He was carrying a bouquet of flowers. He exclaimed, "I found them."
Lois turned to look at him and asked, "Found what?"
"Peonies! She loves peonies! These are her favorite flower ..." He saw Martha and stopped.
Martha stood, faced him and slowly moved in his direction as she asked, "Are those for me?"
Lois stood and pulled Clark to his feet. Once he was up she started pulling him in the direction of the kitchen so that Martha and Jonathan could have some semblance of privacy.
Before they got out of earshot they heard, "There's nobody else."
In a quiet tone, Martha replied, "For me either, Jonathan."
Jonathan, seeking reassurance asked, "Is that true?"
Martha put the palm of her hand on Jonathan's cheek in a gesture hauntingly similar to how Clark cupped Lois's cheek frequently and said, "Yes. You were the first man I ever kissed. You'll be the last."
Jonathan choked out, "So … no affair?"
Martha almost laughed and said, "Well ... not unless you call two cups of coffee at Maise's an affair ..."
Jonathan's expression was sheepish as he said, "I should never have doubted you. I know you too well."
Martha almost shocked him as she said, "Yes, and you should also know that just because I may qualify for membership in the Gray Panthers, that doesn't mean I'm slowing down. And it doesn't mean that I have to stop growing, experimenting, thinking, making friends with interesting people."
Jonathan replied, "I just hope I can keep up with you."
Martha smiled and said, "You don't have to. Just understand me, like you always have. Just be there for me, like I know you always will."
"But what about that picture?"
"That was an experiment. It was supposed to be one of your Christmas presents, but it wasn't finished in time."
"But, you posed …"
"Just once. He took a Polaroid, which he gave me and painted the picture from that."
"I don't know where we would hang that picture. Surely not in the living room. I don't want people ogling at my naked wife."
Martha thought for a second and then with an arched eyebrow said, "I was thinking of the bedroom."
"I'd be satisfied with the Polaroid. I can put that in my wallet."
Martha pulled Jonathan into an embrace.
Lois and Clark were standing in the kitchen also embracing watching all of this unfold. As Martha and Jonathan started a gentle kiss, Lois reached up and wiped away a tear, just before Clark started to kiss her.
After a few minutes, Martha turned to Clark and asked, "Should we take our bags and go to the other apartment?"
Lois pulled away from Clark and said, "Uh, no. About that, the other apartment isn't available."
"Oh? Has your sister arrived? I didn't think she'd be here for a few weeks yet."
Clark replied, "Uh, no, it's not that. There's someone … someone else there right now."
"Oh. Okay. Well, we've slept on the pull out before. Come on, Jonathan, let's make the bed."
And now:
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Chapter 9
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
While Jonathan and Martha were reconciling, Lex Luthor was at home. Lex was in his favorite location, on his balcony looking out over the twinkling lights of the city, his city. He owned it in spirit if not in fact.
His musings were interrupted by the arrival of his Major Domo, Nigel St. John. Nigel reported, "Security has confirmed your suspicions, sir. There is a computer virus."
In a musing tone, Luthor said, "No one is invulnerable, not even Superman, even though he purports to be. No system is guaranteed secure. At no time in history has the power of one destructive individual been so amplified. It's the ultimate terrorism. We should have explored this possibility earlier."
Leaving his balcony, Luthor moved to his desk and opening his humidor, selected a cigar from the Cuba. He loved a good Havana, government embargo, notwithstanding. After nipping off the end he put it to his lips and Nigel used a lighter to apply a flame to the end for him.
After taking a long puff and savoring the taste, he blew out the smoke and said, "I've often wondered what would happen if our entire infrastructure dissolved."
Suggesting the obvious, Nigel said, "Perhaps we are
too dependent, sir."
Luthor nodded, deep in thought and then replied, "Yes. Perhaps. I've never fancied myself as being dependent on anything, or anyone. And yet ... I'm a slave. Like you, Nigel, like all of us ... to a system we created. Still ..."
Luthor was quiet, contemplative for almost a minute and then suddenly he started to laugh.
Mystified at this behavior, Nigel asked, "May I inquire?"
Luthor sobered and then answered, "Just ... musing, Nigel. What it would be like. No Luthor Technologies, no Luthor Industrial, no Luthor Communications ... The real question is, could I weather it, Nigel? Could I … a man who never has to think about money, could I do without? It might be for the best. I could go back to nature. Buy a pair of hiking shoes, get in my car, a car with no driver and drive as far as I could before I fell off the edge of the world, metaphorically, of course. Could I? Would I?"
Nigel felt like he had been dropped between Scalia and Carbides. No matter how he answered, depending on how Luthor took it, he could be wrong. He decided to be truthful, "I think not."
He surprised Nigel by smiling at his evaluation and saying, "Yes. Quite right."
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
The next morning, Lois and Clark left for the Planet after eating a hearty breakfast, prepared by Martha, with her and Jonathan.
Lois noted a twinkle in Martha's eyes during breakfast and as they were walking to the car, she said to Clark, "I think that your mom and dad will be happy to have the apartment to themselves today," and bumped his hip with hers.
He laughed and said, "Was it that obvious?"
"I wasn't even looking for it. It was obvious."
They both were laughing as they entered the Jeep.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Lois and Clark were both at their desks. Lois was checking the transcripts of the trial while Clark was talking with Jimmy.
"Jimmy, I need everything you can dig up on computer viruses."
"No prob, CK. That was the subject of the class I took at MUT with Prof. Laderman." Jimmy glanced over at Lois. "I still can't believe that he did that."
"You're not the only one, Jimmy. Lois is convinced of his innocence and I am beginning to agree with her."
Just then they were all interrupted by the arrival of the elevator with a ‘ding'. As soon as the doors opened, Detective Reed stepped out and spotting Lois and Clark started to move in their direction.
Lois saw her as she neared and with a sarcastic tone and grimace asked, "Do you have a warrant to search the Daily Planet as well?"
With a shake of her head, Detective Reed replied, "Nope. Thought I'd fill you in on something, though. Wondered if I might have your take on it."
Reed pulled a folder out from under her arm and handed it to Lois.
Lois was giving her a skeptical look as she took it. Then, opening it, she started to scan the contents. She started to read aloud, "The deceased was exhumed at approximately ..." She stopped reading and looked at Reed with a question in her eyes, "You dug up Henry Harrison's body?"
Reed nodded and replied, "Per your suggestion, I dug up a body. But it wasn't Harrison's."
Lois was flabbergasted, She blurted out, "But, if the body found in the utility room wasn't Harrison, who was it?"
"A homeless man who lived in the utility room of Harrison's building." She paused to let that sink in before she continued, "He'd been reported missing by his family -- seemed he called them once a week. Dental records match."
Lois challenged, "How come they weren't checked
during the trial?"
With an exasperated sigh, she replied, "They were. There was a match."
Clark asked, "How is that possible?"
With a shrug of her shoulders she stated the obvious, "Computer records can be falsified. Especially by computer experts. Besides, Lena Harrison identified the body."
Lois jumped on this and almost shouted, "Eugene was telling the truth." Her smile was wide as she said, "You can call off the manhunt now."
Reed metaphorically threw cold water on Lois as with a shake of her head she said, "I have a dead body on my hands, and Harrison's still missing." She looked around and added, "For all we know, Eugene Laderman may have killed
two men."
Lois was incredulous, "You
can't be serious."
Reed sounded a lot like Henderson as she replied in a monotone, "I've got a job to do. Maybe he did it, maybe he didn't. That's up to the courts to decide. But right now, I intend to bring him in ... by any means necessary."
So saying, Reed turned and made her way back to the elevator.
Lois was just staring after Reed as she left, but her musings were interrupted by a shout from Jimmy, "Lois! Clark! Check this out."
The urgency in Jimmy's voice galvanized both Lois and Clark into action. They rushed to Jimmy's side and looked at what he monitor was displaying. As they watched, the text on the screen fuzzed, swelled and then faded. Once the screen was blank a new display came into existence and it read, in big, bold letters,
"BEWARE THE IDES OF METROPOLIS."Simultaneously from workstations scattered around the newsroom, groans of frustration could be heard as the phenomena spread. Moving from station to station, Clark confirmed that each one was displaying the same message.
Returning to Lois's side he said, in a low whisper, "Eugene was right."
Lois nodded and asked, "What are we going to do?"
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
A short time earlier, a man in a trench coat entered the darkened HarriTech offices. The staff had all cleared out the day before so there was no one to challenge his presence. The man didn't have to break in because he had a key, a skeleton key perhaps, but a key nonetheless. Once inside he proceeded through the corridors until he came to a particular door. He let himself in to this office and moved past a desk. Pressing a hidden switch opened a hidden door which he passed through. Once inside he flipped a wall switch and subdued lighting flooded the space revealing banks of computers and a couple of desks with terminals on them. There was also a large screen which was displaying the graphic –
"BEWARE THE IDES OF METROPOLIS."Seeing this he smiled in satisfaction and started to laugh as he removed his hat and coat. To all appearances he was settling down to work.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Work, apparently not only in the newsroom, but almost everywhere had come to a screeching halt as the ‘Ides of Metropolis' graphic had taken over machine after machine. Since they were all unable to work the newsroom staff was all gathered around the large screen TV monitor that was tuned in to LNN.
Frank Madison, one of the news anchors was on the screen, "The 'Ides of Metropolis' appeared this morning on the screens of over a million computers, and with its arrival came a catastrophe of unparalleled proportion."
As he continued to speak, his visage was replaced by scenes from stock markets around the globe where pandemonium appeared to reign. Screens which would normally have displayed the current prices of various stocks all had the ‘Ides of Metropolis' graphic as the only display.
The voice-over continued, "World financial markets are collapsing ... the prices of stocks cannot be obtained in the usual way. Transactions are being delayed, so far by only minutes, but the volume is down and investors are starting to panic. It isn't like they could go back to the technology of the twenties and thirties, the old stock ticker … they just aren't available anymore."
The scene shifted to what appeared to be a city street and the façade of a bank. People were lined up at the doors and down the street.
"Banks and other financial institutions have closed their doors creating mass panic. Angry lines of customers can't get their money out."
Once again the scene shifted. This time it was apparently either stock footage or some from a previous emergency of a hospital setting. There were doctors and nurses dressed in surgical gear, operating under low light situations; the bank of lights that dangled directly over the operating table was dark. The only light was being provided by emergency lights that had been set up on the periphery.
The voice-over continued, "Doctors are performing emergency surgeries under war zone conditions."
Suddenly, it became obvious that this was in fact a live shot, because the one operating computer monitor in the OR suddenly dissolved to the ‘Ides of Metropolis' graphic.
The scene shifted again, this time to an airport where planes stood idle on the tarmac, takeoffs and landing having been suspended.
"Airports are shutting down; several near misses have been reported."
There was a shot of the Air Traffic Control center in the Control Tower and there was a shout of dismay as the final screens went dark.
The scene switched back to Frank as he continued, "Two 747'S have had a ‘near miss' above the skies of Metropolis. Utilities, phone systems ... nothing seems to have escaped this deadly virus, with no end in sight. The Army and Navy are on full tactical alert due to the failure of the computer systems controlling the ground to air and nuclear missiles ..."
As they were all watching, startled, Jimmy voiced his feelings, "Great shades of Elvis."
Perry, startled by Jimmy's exclamation, usurping his favorite saying, gave him an angry glare. Jimmy didn't notice and before he did, Perry relented and simply said, "You can say that again."
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Lois and Clark had left while everyone else was distracted by the newscast. Slipping out through the stairwell, Clark super sped them to the garage level.
As he set Lois back on her feet, she kissed him and said, "One of the perks of being married to Superman. Let's go. We need to get Eugene to MUT."
They hurried to the car and headed for Lois's old apartment. When they got there they actually found Eugene waiting for them. He had been watching the TV and noting the developments had assumed that they would be coming for him.
After a short drive they arrived at MUT. Eugene had rolled up his pants legs, put on a trench coat and borrowed a scarf from Lois to cover his head for the trip from the car to the building. He just hoped that no one would look at his feet.
They followed Eugene as he moved through the corridors, shedding his scarf and coat and unrolling his pants legs as he walked quickly to his class room/laboratory.
When they entered his students were there working on a project that the substitute had assigned.
They were surprised when he came in through the door, but were happy to see him. They jumped out of their seats and mobbed him. It took a few seconds to restore order, but when he did, he said, "Guys, we have a problem … a BIG problem to solve. There's a virus that has been released on the Internet and we have to capture it, analyze it and come up with an anti-virus program that will kill it and we have to do it as quickly as we can. Let's get started."
One of the students, Herb Greenlaw, said, "I already captured a sample. I was curious, so I starting to deconstruct it."
"Terrific! What do you have so far?"
There ensued a technical discussion that left Lois and Clark in the dust. The class broke up into groups, each having a separate assignment and they all feverishly went to work.
Finally, Eugene pushed back from his keyboard and rubbed the back of his neck. Lois seized the opportunity to ask a question, "What exactly are you looking for?"
Eugene replied, absently, his mind was obviously on other things, "An entry code. We have a sample, but, I could use an unadulterated copy of the original so we can analyze the virus and find a cure. I've tried all the ones Henry ever used. The names of every member of his immediately family, their birth dates etc. Now we're trying number combinations."
Clark suggested, "What about the name of the program 'The Ides Of Metropolis?'
"I don't think that Henry would use the name of the program as the password, but I'll try it." He started typing and when he stopped and hit enter, the screen flashed up,
"ACCESS DENIED."Eugene started muttering to himself as he continued typing, "'Ides' refers to the fifteenth day of certain months. I've tried some letter/number combinations using that factor, but so far ..."
Each try had the same result,
"ACCESS DENIED."Lois was getting into the mood and offered, "What about the dramatic reference? Julius Caesar ... 'Beware the Ides of March?' It's a long shot, but …"
Eugene said, "It's as good as any. I'll give it a try."
Eugene tried, Julius Caesar, Brutus and sever others, each gave the same response.
Lois made another suggestion, "The play was about a conspiracy. Traitors, politics ... maybe there's another connection."
Eugene considered what Lois said and turned back to his computer. Just as he did the door to the classroom burst open and Detective Reed and two plainclothes police charged in. The first thing that they all saw was the gun in Detective Reed's hand.
Reed shouted, "Police! Step away from the desk. Laderman, down and kiss the floor."
Lois moved to interpose herself between Reed and Eugene. In a very agitated tone, she said, "No, you can't. Eugene is working on finding the antidote to the computer virus. He may be close ... he's the only one who can do it."
Reed looked past Lois at Eugene and the computer display. She was only distracted for a second, but Lois saw her chance and took it. Lashing out with her right leg, she kicked Detective Reed's right wrist knocking the gun from her grasp and sending it flying.
The gun flew through the air and second nature caused Clark to reach out and snag it.
His attention was drawn back to Lois and Reed. After that kick, both women assumed martial arts fighting stances. Reed tried to retaliate with a kick which Lois deftly blocked. Lois then attempted to knock Reeds legs out from under her, but Reed blocked the attempt.
Having thus taken the measure of each other they both resumed a defensive stance and glared at each other. It was a standoff and neither one liked it. They were both used to winning and it galled Lois in particular.
Clark interrupted the standoff by asking, "Are you ladies finished?"
When Clark finally took his eyes off of his wife, he saw that Reed and the other cops had their hands up.
Seeing this, Lois looked around and with a snicker said, "Yes,
we are ... Mr. Law and Order."
It finally dawned on Clark what they were all staring at. He was holding Reed's gun and negligently he had trained it on the cops. He knew just what he had to do then. He dropped the magazine and jacked the slide to remove the round from the chamber. Then he dropped the gun to the floor and put his hands up.
One of the plainclothes men walked over and stooping, picked up the gun and the ammunition.
While he was doing this, Clark walked over to Reed and said, persuasively, "Don't you see what's going on? Have you read the news? Eugene may be our only hope."
Reed had been giving Lois a wary eye, but Clark was a handsome man and Reed reacted to that fact. Clark could see that she appeared to be listening.
Seeing Reed loosen up some, Lois tried to reason with her by making an impassioned plea, "Eugene worked under Harrison. He saw Harrison develop the virus. He's the only one who can find the antidote. For God sakes, let him try."
Reed considered Lois's argument. She looked around. The classroom didn't have any windows, so Laderman couldn't escape that way. There was only the one door. Making up her mind, Reed turned to the plainclothes men and said, "Stay here. Don't let anyone in or out of this room."
The cops nodded in acknowledgement.
Lois asked, "Where are you going?"
Reed finished reloading her weapon and put it in her waist holster before she replied, "HarriTech. I followed Lena there last night. She's got some explainin' to do."
"We were told that they were locking up the building as soon as everyone left. Look, I'm going with you."
Nursing a grudge from their brief fight, Reed said, "In your dreams, Lane."
Refusing to be denied, Lois followed Reed out the door.
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