Title: Enticing Alliances
Disclaimer: I don't own them. The closest I got was when my friend's sister saw Michael Rosenbaum at a restaurant.
Rating: PG13
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Chapter 1: The Thing in the Sewer
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Lex Luthor sat at his desk... actually he was in more of a hunched over position, fast asleep, with his head resting on a pile of papers. His slumber though, was short-lived as a shrill tone pierced through the air.
The young man swore out loudly before cracking open an eyelid. With as much coordination as he could muster, he got up and shuffled around the folders and files on his desk to find his cell phone.
"What?" He half snapped, half mumbled into the small device.
"M-Mr Luthor? I'm sorry to disturb you but-"
"Do you have any idea what time it is?" Lex growled, reaching for his cold cup of coffee, a tell tale sign that he'd been working late. Again.
"It's 10 am sir," the man responded carefully.
"Oh..." Lex's face contorted at the really bad tasting coffee, " well... what's the problem?"
"There's a situation down in sector three. Something is trapped down in the sewer system, it's the same sewer that we need to flood this afternoon." The worker explained.
"Why are you telling me about this? Call Gabe, it's *his* problem... what exactly is trapped down there anyway?" Lex asked, smoothing out his wrinkled suit and thanking God that he didn't have to worry about early morning hair issues.
"Gabe was delayed in Metropolis, we called his home but his kid didn't know how to reach him either. As for the thing in the sewer..." the man trailed off.
"Yes?" Lex prompted, grabbing his keys and heading for his car.
"We think it's a child."
Lex stopped dead in his tracks, "What? A child?! Did you call the fire department?"
There was a pause, "Oh... I should call the fire department?" the man asked.
"Yes, you moron! Now try keep this situation under wraps, and whatever you do *don't* flood the sewer. It would make really bad press if we killed a child. I'll be there in ten minutes."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*
"You don't understand, my dad works here... and Lex Luthor is a friend of a friend!" Chloe explained to the huge security guard that stood in her path. She was trapped behind a piece of yellow tape, set up by the police that ran along the perimeter of the small field. A few other reporters gathered beside her in the chilly air waiting for tidbits of information to leak out.
"You stay," the guard ordered.
Chloe rolled her eyes, and pulled her jacket tighter around her, "I see now... you speak dumbass. Let me translate. Me reporter, me report news. Me go in and see your bald boss Lex Luthor."
The guard ignored her and Chloe grunted in frustration, before moving off to the side to get a better look at the situation. A somewhat rumpled Luthor stood beside an assortment of fire fighters and factory workers, all looking down a giant black manhole in the middle of the field. An intense scene.
"I don't know what going on... but I *will* find out..." Chloe mumbled to herself defiantly before cautiously slipping under the tape.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"It's a three year old!" the factory worker exclaimed.
"No, it's a baby!" the firefighter argued fervently.
"How would a baby climb down a sewer?"
"The same way a three year old would!"
Lex sighed and gritted his teeth, "Both of you, shut up!" Carefully, he bent down on his knees to the manhole and listened carefully. There was a short loud burst of sound, followed by a low whine.
"You idiots! It's a damn dog!" Lex snapped, getting up and dusting off his suit.
"A- a dog?" The two men asked simultaneously. They listened again closely, then nodded in agreement.
"Flood it." Lex ordered, heading back to his car.
"You're going to let the dog die in the sewer??" Chloe yelled, coming into view.
"What the...?" Lex looked surprised at the interruption. "How did you get in here?"
"I'm sorry, Mr Luthor... I don't know how she got past." the security guard said, grabbing Chloe by the back of her jacket and pulling her up.
"Wait." Lex ordered. "Bring her here."
Chloe glared at Lex, "You can tell your boyfriend to put me down now."
Lex glared at her before nodding at the guard who immediately let her go and retreated.
"How much of that did you hear?" He asked at a level only she could hear.
"Everything. Just because it's a dog and not a child, you're willing to sacrifice it's life?" Chloe hissed angrily.
Lex paused for a moment, "Yes."
The girl's jaw dropped jaw dropped, "But it's a dog... it has feelings, emotions, intelligence..."
"The stupid creature fell down a manhole, how intelligent could it be?" Lex snapped.
"Well, if *your* workers hadn't left it open in the first place, this could have been avoided." Chloe pointed out.
"Maybe the mutt is just suicidal! Did you ever think of that? Maybe it travels around the world throwing itself in front of speeding cars, running into burning buildings and falling down manholes on purpose!" Lex's voice elevated with every word. He didn't mean for it to, but his day had just gone from bad to worse and he was in no mood for an argument.
Chloe raised an eyebrow, "Late night, huh?" The man's glare remain unchanged, so she continued brazenly.
"You know that killing a dog generally brings bad press, and don't think I won't tell the whole story. Lex Luthor: Animal Hater... has an evil ring to it." Chloe said, folding her arms.
Lex glared at her, knowing full well that she was right. Those animal activists would be all over it...
"Fine," Lex grunted, "Go save the dog." he ordered the fireman. He wasn't giving in... merely rethinking the situation and coming up with another solution.
"We can't, sir." the fireman stated, hauling out a diagram.
"You see there are two levels; we need two people for the job, and none of my men can fit through the second entrance because it's too small."
Lex sighed, "Can't we make the entrance *bigger*?"
"That could take hours, the animal would be dead by then. I've called for help from Metropololis..." the man explained.
"...but that will also take hours," Lex finished off. He sighed and decided to fix the problem himself.
"Fine. I'll go in." Lex stated, taking off his jacket.
"You're.. you're to big Mr Luthor." the fireman said in a polite a way as possible.
"I can go in." Chloe offered, stepping between the two men.
Lex ignored her and turned to the fireman, "Don't you have anyone else on your team small enough to fit through the second level? Who designed these sewers anyway? Whoever they are, they're fired, effective as of now."
"Hello? Willing body, standing right here! I'm smaller than anyone else, so let me do it." Chloe stated.
"You're not going in, Sullivan. Forget about it. Gabe would kill me." Lex explained slowly for her benefit.
"Listen, Luthor," Chloe spat, "I'm not doing this for *you* I'm doing this to help the poor defenceless dog that's trapped down a manhole you created. The least you could do is thank me."
"You know she *is* small enough..." the fireman contemplated. "She might be our only hope."
Lex thought for a second, wondering whether or not to risk it. After what seemed like ages, he came to a decision.
"Fine, if she's going, then I'll go in too, and if we both die saving a stupid dog, I hope that's what people remember us for." The billionaire nodded to himself in satisfaction.
"You wouldn't have to go in, Mr Luthor." the fireman said quickly, "We just need someone for level two, I could get one of my other men to-"
"I'd never ask someone to do anything I wasn't willing to do myself," Lex spat, "Now go get us overalls and cables.... " Lex saw the man hesitate, "I meant now!"
Chloe watched the fireman scurry of and she smirked at the young, pissed off billionaire. "I see why my father loves working for you now."
"Gabe is competent, unlike most of the people working for me." Lex admitted, noticing for the first time how tired Chloe looked too.
"Don't tell me you had a late night too? Do you need something?" He asked, regaining a little of his civility. It was hard to be civil in a suit you slept in.
"I'm fine... I just spent the night rewriting articles for the Torch because my stupid laptop crashed," she mumbled. "Then I get woken up with a call from your people telling me there's an urgent situation and my dad needs to get down to sector three immediately."
"Which would explain how you found out about this." Lex nodded in understanding, "I apologize for the rude awakening you received."
"It's nothing a good exclusive on this story won't fix?" Chloe hinted, raising an eyebrow.
"There's not going to be a story. As far as everyone else is concerned there was a minor leakage problem, nothing newsworthy." Lex stated carefully, making sure that Chloe understood his meaning.
"You want me to cover this up? Lex Luthor risks his life to save a puppy and you want me to cover it up?" Chloe asked in disbelief.
"Yes." The young man replied. He saw a frown grow on the girl's face.
"I've never covered up a story before and I don't intend to start now." Chloe said defiantly.
Just then fireman returned, laden with gadgets. Lex grabbed two black overalls and tossed one to Chloe. He was going to have to convince her not to write an article about this. The last thing he wanted was more reporters... more questions...
"Are you sure you want to do this?" Lex asked once more as he quickly attached the cable to himself securely.
"You don't have to worry about me," Chloe announced, trying unsuccessfully to clip on the gadgets. The belt that stretched over her upper body didn't seem to fit into place.
"Here, give that to me." Lex ordered, taking the belt from her fingers and pulling them tightly around her waist.
"Jeez, I do have a few vital organs down there," Chloe commented, to cover up the strangeness of having Lex Luthor fiddle with a buckle around her waist.
"I intend on keeping you alive, Sullivan. That involves making sure these cables won't come loose." he smirked.
"It's good to know you care," Chloe rolled her eyes pushing him away, "I can do this myself."
"Are you two ready?" The fireman asked. "He took out a double sided metal hook and connected one end to the front of Lex's belt and the other to the back of Chloe's belt.
"Hey, what's this for?" Chloe asked, suddenly aware that she was attached to Lex Luthor at the back.
"With the way the sewer is constructed, the safest way to descend is parallel to the ground... like on Mission Impossible" the fireman added attaching the main cable to a belt on Lex's back.
"Let's just get this over with," Lex stated, turning to the man hole. The sudden jolt caused Chloe to almost loose her footing.
"Watch where you're going!" she snapped, quickly regaining her balance. "Actually, you should watch where *I'm* going because since I'm in the front, I'll be going in first."
"Actually I'm in control here, seeing as how the main cable is on my belt and you're attached to me." Lex countered.
"Are we going to do this or not?" Chloe snapped, a little tension getting in her way.
"Fine, Sullivan. Go ahead." Lex sighed, matching his steps to hers so she wouldn't fall into him. God knows what she'd do to him if that happened.
"Okay... we're going in." Chloe stated, coming to the edge of the manhole. "Does this feel like a really bad action movie, or is it just me?"
"Usually the hero is out saving the world instead of descending into a sewer to save a dog." Lex commented. He put an arm around Chloe's waist tentatively.
"We'll jump on three, okay? One... two."
"Wait!" Chloe said, "Did you mean on three or wait for three then jump?"
"Listen to instructions, Sullivan, I said *on* three," Lex said with a smirk.
"Jeez, it was a simple question, no need to- aaaahh!" Chloe screeched as Lex jumped without warning.
When the cable snapped into place and Chloe realised she was still alive she turned her head around and tried unsuccessfully to whack the man behind her.
"You idiot! I could have died!" she yelled, the echo spread across the large empty space that descended for what seemed like miles beneath them.
"Don't worry, Sullivan. I've got your back," Lex smirked, moving her body so that it was parallel to the ground then shifting directly behind her in mid air.
"That's exactly what I was worried about." Chloe mumbled. They both spread their arms out in a way similar to that of two skydivers. Except of course, they were in a sewer.
"Keep the cable coming," he said into the ear piece.
Chloe glanced at the young man who was inches away from her back. It wasn't as unpleasant as she thought it would be. Of course it was dark and scary, but not entirely unpleasant.
"So why didn't I get the cool earpiece?" Chloe asked in mock irritation.
"Because you got to carry the flashlight," Lex explained.
"I have a flash light? Where?" Chloe checked the overall's pockets and felt the solid handle.
"Here, give it to me." Lex ordered, trying to take it away from her.
"No! You already have the cool earpiece!" Chloe argued.
"Yes, but I'm older than you, I should have the flashlight too," Lex reasoned carefully.
"What? That makes no sense, you're just on an eternal power struggle aren't you? Now let go before it-"
The flashlight slipped from their fingers and plummeted into the blackness.
"...drops."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Okay, so what did you think? Should I continue this one?
Disclaimer: I don't own them. The closest I got was when my friend's sister saw Michael Rosenbaum at a restaurant.
Rating: PG13
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Chapter 1: The Thing in the Sewer
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Lex Luthor sat at his desk... actually he was in more of a hunched over position, fast asleep, with his head resting on a pile of papers. His slumber though, was short-lived as a shrill tone pierced through the air.
The young man swore out loudly before cracking open an eyelid. With as much coordination as he could muster, he got up and shuffled around the folders and files on his desk to find his cell phone.
"What?" He half snapped, half mumbled into the small device.
"M-Mr Luthor? I'm sorry to disturb you but-"
"Do you have any idea what time it is?" Lex growled, reaching for his cold cup of coffee, a tell tale sign that he'd been working late. Again.
"It's 10 am sir," the man responded carefully.
"Oh..." Lex's face contorted at the really bad tasting coffee, " well... what's the problem?"
"There's a situation down in sector three. Something is trapped down in the sewer system, it's the same sewer that we need to flood this afternoon." The worker explained.
"Why are you telling me about this? Call Gabe, it's *his* problem... what exactly is trapped down there anyway?" Lex asked, smoothing out his wrinkled suit and thanking God that he didn't have to worry about early morning hair issues.
"Gabe was delayed in Metropolis, we called his home but his kid didn't know how to reach him either. As for the thing in the sewer..." the man trailed off.
"Yes?" Lex prompted, grabbing his keys and heading for his car.
"We think it's a child."
Lex stopped dead in his tracks, "What? A child?! Did you call the fire department?"
There was a pause, "Oh... I should call the fire department?" the man asked.
"Yes, you moron! Now try keep this situation under wraps, and whatever you do *don't* flood the sewer. It would make really bad press if we killed a child. I'll be there in ten minutes."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*
"You don't understand, my dad works here... and Lex Luthor is a friend of a friend!" Chloe explained to the huge security guard that stood in her path. She was trapped behind a piece of yellow tape, set up by the police that ran along the perimeter of the small field. A few other reporters gathered beside her in the chilly air waiting for tidbits of information to leak out.
"You stay," the guard ordered.
Chloe rolled her eyes, and pulled her jacket tighter around her, "I see now... you speak dumbass. Let me translate. Me reporter, me report news. Me go in and see your bald boss Lex Luthor."
The guard ignored her and Chloe grunted in frustration, before moving off to the side to get a better look at the situation. A somewhat rumpled Luthor stood beside an assortment of fire fighters and factory workers, all looking down a giant black manhole in the middle of the field. An intense scene.
"I don't know what going on... but I *will* find out..." Chloe mumbled to herself defiantly before cautiously slipping under the tape.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"It's a three year old!" the factory worker exclaimed.
"No, it's a baby!" the firefighter argued fervently.
"How would a baby climb down a sewer?"
"The same way a three year old would!"
Lex sighed and gritted his teeth, "Both of you, shut up!" Carefully, he bent down on his knees to the manhole and listened carefully. There was a short loud burst of sound, followed by a low whine.
"You idiots! It's a damn dog!" Lex snapped, getting up and dusting off his suit.
"A- a dog?" The two men asked simultaneously. They listened again closely, then nodded in agreement.
"Flood it." Lex ordered, heading back to his car.
"You're going to let the dog die in the sewer??" Chloe yelled, coming into view.
"What the...?" Lex looked surprised at the interruption. "How did you get in here?"
"I'm sorry, Mr Luthor... I don't know how she got past." the security guard said, grabbing Chloe by the back of her jacket and pulling her up.
"Wait." Lex ordered. "Bring her here."
Chloe glared at Lex, "You can tell your boyfriend to put me down now."
Lex glared at her before nodding at the guard who immediately let her go and retreated.
"How much of that did you hear?" He asked at a level only she could hear.
"Everything. Just because it's a dog and not a child, you're willing to sacrifice it's life?" Chloe hissed angrily.
Lex paused for a moment, "Yes."
The girl's jaw dropped jaw dropped, "But it's a dog... it has feelings, emotions, intelligence..."
"The stupid creature fell down a manhole, how intelligent could it be?" Lex snapped.
"Well, if *your* workers hadn't left it open in the first place, this could have been avoided." Chloe pointed out.
"Maybe the mutt is just suicidal! Did you ever think of that? Maybe it travels around the world throwing itself in front of speeding cars, running into burning buildings and falling down manholes on purpose!" Lex's voice elevated with every word. He didn't mean for it to, but his day had just gone from bad to worse and he was in no mood for an argument.
Chloe raised an eyebrow, "Late night, huh?" The man's glare remain unchanged, so she continued brazenly.
"You know that killing a dog generally brings bad press, and don't think I won't tell the whole story. Lex Luthor: Animal Hater... has an evil ring to it." Chloe said, folding her arms.
Lex glared at her, knowing full well that she was right. Those animal activists would be all over it...
"Fine," Lex grunted, "Go save the dog." he ordered the fireman. He wasn't giving in... merely rethinking the situation and coming up with another solution.
"We can't, sir." the fireman stated, hauling out a diagram.
"You see there are two levels; we need two people for the job, and none of my men can fit through the second entrance because it's too small."
Lex sighed, "Can't we make the entrance *bigger*?"
"That could take hours, the animal would be dead by then. I've called for help from Metropololis..." the man explained.
"...but that will also take hours," Lex finished off. He sighed and decided to fix the problem himself.
"Fine. I'll go in." Lex stated, taking off his jacket.
"You're.. you're to big Mr Luthor." the fireman said in a polite a way as possible.
"I can go in." Chloe offered, stepping between the two men.
Lex ignored her and turned to the fireman, "Don't you have anyone else on your team small enough to fit through the second level? Who designed these sewers anyway? Whoever they are, they're fired, effective as of now."
"Hello? Willing body, standing right here! I'm smaller than anyone else, so let me do it." Chloe stated.
"You're not going in, Sullivan. Forget about it. Gabe would kill me." Lex explained slowly for her benefit.
"Listen, Luthor," Chloe spat, "I'm not doing this for *you* I'm doing this to help the poor defenceless dog that's trapped down a manhole you created. The least you could do is thank me."
"You know she *is* small enough..." the fireman contemplated. "She might be our only hope."
Lex thought for a second, wondering whether or not to risk it. After what seemed like ages, he came to a decision.
"Fine, if she's going, then I'll go in too, and if we both die saving a stupid dog, I hope that's what people remember us for." The billionaire nodded to himself in satisfaction.
"You wouldn't have to go in, Mr Luthor." the fireman said quickly, "We just need someone for level two, I could get one of my other men to-"
"I'd never ask someone to do anything I wasn't willing to do myself," Lex spat, "Now go get us overalls and cables.... " Lex saw the man hesitate, "I meant now!"
Chloe watched the fireman scurry of and she smirked at the young, pissed off billionaire. "I see why my father loves working for you now."
"Gabe is competent, unlike most of the people working for me." Lex admitted, noticing for the first time how tired Chloe looked too.
"Don't tell me you had a late night too? Do you need something?" He asked, regaining a little of his civility. It was hard to be civil in a suit you slept in.
"I'm fine... I just spent the night rewriting articles for the Torch because my stupid laptop crashed," she mumbled. "Then I get woken up with a call from your people telling me there's an urgent situation and my dad needs to get down to sector three immediately."
"Which would explain how you found out about this." Lex nodded in understanding, "I apologize for the rude awakening you received."
"It's nothing a good exclusive on this story won't fix?" Chloe hinted, raising an eyebrow.
"There's not going to be a story. As far as everyone else is concerned there was a minor leakage problem, nothing newsworthy." Lex stated carefully, making sure that Chloe understood his meaning.
"You want me to cover this up? Lex Luthor risks his life to save a puppy and you want me to cover it up?" Chloe asked in disbelief.
"Yes." The young man replied. He saw a frown grow on the girl's face.
"I've never covered up a story before and I don't intend to start now." Chloe said defiantly.
Just then fireman returned, laden with gadgets. Lex grabbed two black overalls and tossed one to Chloe. He was going to have to convince her not to write an article about this. The last thing he wanted was more reporters... more questions...
"Are you sure you want to do this?" Lex asked once more as he quickly attached the cable to himself securely.
"You don't have to worry about me," Chloe announced, trying unsuccessfully to clip on the gadgets. The belt that stretched over her upper body didn't seem to fit into place.
"Here, give that to me." Lex ordered, taking the belt from her fingers and pulling them tightly around her waist.
"Jeez, I do have a few vital organs down there," Chloe commented, to cover up the strangeness of having Lex Luthor fiddle with a buckle around her waist.
"I intend on keeping you alive, Sullivan. That involves making sure these cables won't come loose." he smirked.
"It's good to know you care," Chloe rolled her eyes pushing him away, "I can do this myself."
"Are you two ready?" The fireman asked. "He took out a double sided metal hook and connected one end to the front of Lex's belt and the other to the back of Chloe's belt.
"Hey, what's this for?" Chloe asked, suddenly aware that she was attached to Lex Luthor at the back.
"With the way the sewer is constructed, the safest way to descend is parallel to the ground... like on Mission Impossible" the fireman added attaching the main cable to a belt on Lex's back.
"Let's just get this over with," Lex stated, turning to the man hole. The sudden jolt caused Chloe to almost loose her footing.
"Watch where you're going!" she snapped, quickly regaining her balance. "Actually, you should watch where *I'm* going because since I'm in the front, I'll be going in first."
"Actually I'm in control here, seeing as how the main cable is on my belt and you're attached to me." Lex countered.
"Are we going to do this or not?" Chloe snapped, a little tension getting in her way.
"Fine, Sullivan. Go ahead." Lex sighed, matching his steps to hers so she wouldn't fall into him. God knows what she'd do to him if that happened.
"Okay... we're going in." Chloe stated, coming to the edge of the manhole. "Does this feel like a really bad action movie, or is it just me?"
"Usually the hero is out saving the world instead of descending into a sewer to save a dog." Lex commented. He put an arm around Chloe's waist tentatively.
"We'll jump on three, okay? One... two."
"Wait!" Chloe said, "Did you mean on three or wait for three then jump?"
"Listen to instructions, Sullivan, I said *on* three," Lex said with a smirk.
"Jeez, it was a simple question, no need to- aaaahh!" Chloe screeched as Lex jumped without warning.
When the cable snapped into place and Chloe realised she was still alive she turned her head around and tried unsuccessfully to whack the man behind her.
"You idiot! I could have died!" she yelled, the echo spread across the large empty space that descended for what seemed like miles beneath them.
"Don't worry, Sullivan. I've got your back," Lex smirked, moving her body so that it was parallel to the ground then shifting directly behind her in mid air.
"That's exactly what I was worried about." Chloe mumbled. They both spread their arms out in a way similar to that of two skydivers. Except of course, they were in a sewer.
"Keep the cable coming," he said into the ear piece.
Chloe glanced at the young man who was inches away from her back. It wasn't as unpleasant as she thought it would be. Of course it was dark and scary, but not entirely unpleasant.
"So why didn't I get the cool earpiece?" Chloe asked in mock irritation.
"Because you got to carry the flashlight," Lex explained.
"I have a flash light? Where?" Chloe checked the overall's pockets and felt the solid handle.
"Here, give it to me." Lex ordered, trying to take it away from her.
"No! You already have the cool earpiece!" Chloe argued.
"Yes, but I'm older than you, I should have the flashlight too," Lex reasoned carefully.
"What? That makes no sense, you're just on an eternal power struggle aren't you? Now let go before it-"
The flashlight slipped from their fingers and plummeted into the blackness.
"...drops."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Okay, so what did you think? Should I continue this one?
