Authour's note: I'd just like to thank all you guys that gave me feedback. It defintly helped boost my spirits. Thanks alot for your comments!!!
I think it was BJ? who asked why Lois didn't recognize Remington upon meeting him in the cab. Well think of him kind of like Stevie Ray Vaughn. People know his music and his name, but not many people outside the south know what he looks like.
feedback welcome always!!
LexCorp Towers
Lex Luthour took a long drag on from his Cuban cigar. His indulgence, limited to twice a week so as not to become addicted. Normal men had addictions, and Lex Luthour was anything but normal.
In his ascension from the streets of suicide slums to the very top of the tallest building in Metropolis, Lex Luthour had done and seen things no normal man could possibly imagine. Most of these things would be considered illegal by the ignorant masses. However they, in their limited understanding of the way the world worked, could never hope to grasp the importance of his actions.
Many people had been eliminated, but that had been for the greater good. Thousands of people would have been out of a job had Lex not taken the initiative to remove certain threats to the economy.
Take that sniveling insect Marcus Wisner for example. Before his untimely demise at the hands of muggers, he was an emperor of one of the world’s largest media conglomerates. He had owned over seventy-five broadcast stations, thirteen magazines, and two big movie studios.
Thinking to himself no man should be cursed with such a large amount of wealth (he being the exclusion); Lex set about curing Mr. Wisner of his affliction. It wouldn’t be enough to simply remove him; Wisner had a very family friendly image, and people would see it as a tragedy instead of the poetic justice it really was. Lex had come up with the perfect plan: make Wisner look like the slime he really was exposing him for the entire world to see, and take his businesses in the process. Simple enough, for Lex had an ace up his sleeve. See Wisner, had an addiction, and it wasn’t Chunky Munky ice cream.
It was widely known, in certain criminal circles, that Wisner was a frequent visitor to Metropolis’s best kept secret, Madame Phoebe’s Brothel.
Though its location was on the seedier side of town, Madame Phoebe’s was frequented by only the wealthiest of Metropolis’s citizens.
Lex, smiled in recollection. Yes he’d spent his fair share of days, and nights at Madame Phoebe’s.
A wise man once said “simplicity is the art of genius. Only a fool values intricacy.” If that were true, and Lex believed it was, then his plan was as inspired as Einstein splitting the atom. All he had to do was hire two thugs to follow Wisner on his way home from the brothel. Then, when he reached the outskirts of Suicide Slums, kill him.
This way when the police conducted their formal investigation, they would be forced to look into the reason Wisner was found in the slums. And what they would find—well suffice to say Wisner wouldn’t come out looking like an alter boy.
Naturally his plan went off without a hitch. He’d given a press release to the planet feigning total shock, and had promised the people of Metropolis that he would do his best to clean up the image of big business. Naturally, those fools had eaten that watery drivel up like a hogs at the trough.
With the public in an uproar, and the stockholder’s running as fast as their attorney’s could carry them, Wisner’s company went virtually bankrupt, and all it holdings were divvied up between several wealth entrepreneur’s; the main beneficiary being Lex Luthour.
Yes, simplicity had served him well. Not to say he was simplistic; on the contrary he was no doubt the most complex man on the planet. Mere mortals could never attain his level of consciousness and understanding. Only one person, or should he say “thing”, came close to being as great as he-Superman.
Superman, that over grown boy scout. He’d been the proverbial fly in his ointment for months. Before his initial arrival in town, Lex had been unchallenged in his supremacy. With the flick of his wrist hundreds lived and died, companies prospered of tanked, and nations rose and fell. Now, however, Superman more often then not foiled all his best laid plans.
He supposed it was just the natural order of things. Every great man in history must have his challenges; Augustus had Mark Anthony, Romulus had Remus, Caesar had Pompey, and so on throughout history. How fitting that he, Lex Luthour, would be the next historical individual in line for a rivalry to define the century—no the millennium. There was no doubt in his mind it would; that is if he intended to allow Superman to live long enough.
Personal challenges were fine for ordinary men, like Augustus and Pompey had been, but where were they now? Dead, that’s where. Lex had no intentions of ever expiring, but he knew that with Superman around the possibilities of achieving immortality would be greatly strained.
That’s why now, against his better judgment, he’d developed a convoluted arrangement that insured Superman’s demise. The kicker was that he wouldn’t even have to lift a finger more then necessary. There was even the possibility of making a few billion in the process.
So now he sat, waiting for conformation on step two. They should have arrived by now he mused. After that it was only a matter of dialing a phone.
Lex’s attention was torn away from his musings by, a soft, but clearly audible voice just outside the door to his office.
“I don’t care if he’s meeting with president of the United States; I need to speak with him now!”
“I told you before Miss Lane; Mr. Luthour is very busy at the moment he’s on an important conference call with an overseas client.”
“Ha! A likely story. Listen lady I wasn’t born yesterday I know when I’m being given the brush off. You get on your little intercom and you get me in that office now, or so help me I’ll kick the door in.”
A momentary pause, and an audible sigh followed.
Poor Gladys, Lex though as a small smiled stole across his face. She never stood a chance against my Lois. She truly is the only woman worthy enough to stand by my side.
No doubt she’s received the ticket I sent to her; and if I know Lois, which I do, she’ll come in here demanding explanations accusing me of being presumptuous and egotistical. Of course I’ll play the innocent, and pretend I was just thinking of the scoop she’d get for the Planet.
As an apology for my assumption I’ll gallantly offer to go to the ball with her, and as an added bonus a one on one interview afterwards. He snickered satisfactorily at this; woman, even his beloved Lois, were like cats: all one had to do was stoke them the right way, and they would be like putty in your hands.
To his left the intercom crackled gallingly
“Mr. Luthour, there’s a Lois Lane here to see you. Shall I send her in sir?”
“Yes send her in Gladys”
“yes sir”
Lex swiftly doused his cigar and stood in front of his desk. A devious smile crossing his face as he awaited the arrival of hurricane Lois. A slight metallic click announced her entrance. Good he thought.
On with the show.
***********
Metro cabbie en route to Daily Planet one hour later
What in the world had just happened?
Lois sat in unabashed awe of what had just occurred in Lex’s office. She could have sworn she’d made explicit plans to tear Lex a new one. So, why was she sitting in the back seat of a cab wondering when Lex’s personal tailor would be over to her apartment to outfit her in a new dress? Why was she making plans to get her nails done at Charlie’s on Lex’s personal line of credit? And the big one—why the heck was she going to the ball with Lex?
This was insane, unthinkable, impossible, degrading, and a whole bushel of other adjectives she couldn’t think of. How did it happen? When did it happen? And most importantly why did it happen? Maybe if she went back over the meeting in her mind she’d see were she went wrong.
Upon entering Lex’s office, which was just as impressive the twelfth time she saw it, immediately she caught sight of the illustrious billionaire—leaning casually against his enormous redwood desk. He smiled at her cordially, and opened his arms in greeting.
“Lois what a delightful surprise. You look lovely as always”
“Lex. It’s nice to see you” her tone indicating otherwise
Lex furrowed his brow in concern, sensing her obvious discomfort no doubt.
“Why Lois, is there something the matter. You seem--distressed”
“Is there something the matter?” either he was really dense, or he was playing innocent. She couldn’t’ quite tell which. That was the one thing that bugged her about Lex; she couldn’t read him like she could read other people.
“I’ll tell you what’s the matter; where do you get off sending Perry tickets in my name?”
“Well I just—“
“You thought what? That I would be flattered. That I should thank my lucky stars you threw me a bone. Did it ever occur to you I had other plans that night? Serious journalistic…stuff!”
For his part Lex at least had the decency to look surprised “I’m sorry for my presumption Lois…I really…that is I didn’t mean to imply you didn’t have anything better to do…” Lex sighed.
Lois could tell this was hard on him. At present he was looking everywhere in the office except for the object of his oration. His demeanor was almost sheepish, and while she could tell his apology was sincere she could tell it was challenging for him to admit his mistake. He looked, to her, like a puppy that’d been kicked. Well, a billionaire puppy with nice teeth, that’d been kicked.
For some anomalous reason Lois was beginning to take pity on the man. He had, after all, been trying to do her a favor. Why was she being so ungrateful? Reporters would kill for the opportunity to stand outside the gates to the Black and White ball, and here she was grousing because someone had tried to do her a favor.. Everyone and their mother wanted to go to the Black and White ball, and if she was honest with herself she did too.
“Look, if it’s really too much of a burden I’ll give the tickets to the mayor’s brother in-law. He’s been begging for them all month.”
“No…I mean. I’ll take the tickets.” She sighed, resting her hand on his shoulder compassionately. “You have nothing to apologize for Lex. I was the one who completely overreacted. I lost control here, in the newsroom, in Perry’s office. I’ve been a little preoccupied all day, so I’ve been blowing little things way out of proportion.”
Lex beamed, elated that he was in the clear, “Lois, let me make this up to you…”
Lois sighed at the memory. <I swear I was a Kerth award winning journalist when I woke up this morning>
That meeting certainly didn’t go as planned Lois fumed. This was just unbelievable. What was it about Lex that she couldn’t say no to? He had this strange pull over her, and no matter what she did she couldn’t break away from it. Well there was one thing—Superman. Whenever he was around everyone and everything faded into the background. To bad he hadn’t asked her to the ball; no doubt he’d be doing superhero stuff that night.
She still had to make up with Clark. Whatever might be going on in her life she couldn’t just leave her best friend high and dry like that. Begrudgingly she admitted that this morning she’d—overreacted slightly. Clark may be a hayseed, but he didn’t deserve to be treated like some backward hick. He’d proved more then once that his background was steeped in culture. And Perry was right, Clark was a great dancer.
Back in his Penthouse Lex smiled deviously. Bringing his snifter of Brandy smoothly to his lips and taking a nip, he toasted his victory. Staring out over the skyline he caught site of the Daily Planet building. His grin widened; soon everything he’d been working for would be his: Lois, the Takagi corporation, absolute and unchallenged control of the Metropolis economy, and the death of Superman—not necessarily in that order.
A loud sonic boom erupted over the city as the man of steel streaked off into the sky. Down below the citizens of Metropolis watched him in god-like awe.
”Smile while you still can Superman” he said with a smirk. “After all, even a condemned man is allowed one last moment of solace.”
*********************
