Superman: The Ark of Krypton

Chapter 20

By

Jason Richard

Luthor, naturally, had security outside his little meeting room. Two security guards stood outside, armed with guns and nightsticks. Lois was undaunted, however, and just needed to get into a room beside them. She had swiped a key card from a scientist earlier, so that was no problem. All she needed to do now was slip in when the guards weren't looking. After a few moments a janitor walked by, and the moment the guards shifted their gaze to look at the noise Lois was in the room.

In that room, which turned out to be someone's office, Lois found a vent on one side of the room. She could just barely hear sounds coming from the other side of the wall. Putting her phone to the vent, she listened very carefully to what they were saying, hoping that this was her big scoop.

Clark, during all of this, entered that corridor behind her, glad that he could finally use his X-Ray vision. Apparently he had passed whatever substance in the walls blocked it, and could see into the room Lois was spying on, a room filled with men in suits. That being said he couldn't hear what lois heard from that room, mostly likely due to the device in the middle of said room.

He knew because he couldn't hear the security guards breathing, or indeed any sound they made when they moved, which should have been obvious to him. Clark had a feeling that devices that muffled sound would become more popular with a man like Superman around.

But Clark wanted to know what was being said, so taking a cue from Lois he sped back to the group of scientists without being spotted and discreetly snatched a keycard. He sped to a room next to Lex's hiding place, unlocked it, rushed and put the key back, and then whoosed back into the room. From there, he was able to side up to the wall, within the device's range, and listened in, right along with Lois.

Lois hung onto every word she could catch through that vent. She didn't recognize all the voices she heard, but it was hard to miss Metropolis City's most wanted in the room. She recognized his voice from various intergang recruitment videos that popped up online from time to time before getting shut down. This, of course, was bruno Mannheim. Clark Kent also recognized the voice.

And Lex Luthor was there with them. It was, after all, Mr. Luthor whom Lois had followed there. Finally, she was about to get some hard evidence.

And the irony that rookie Clark Kent was partially responsible for it was not lost on her. It was his idea to come here and manipulate Luthor's press conference. It was the one bitter pill for her, but it would be worth it.

She and Clark listened intently.

"So Mr. Luthor," said Mannheim. "What's the big idea? You decide to show the world your secret stash right as we get here?"

"Believe me," said Luthor. "The timing of all this wasn't my intention. I was...backed into a corner."

"By that reporter?" said one of the other men. "You're joking."

"The press are the eyes and ears of the people," said Luthor. "Look bad to them and you look bad to their subscribers. He was practically threatening bad press with that move."

"Well," said Mannheim. "Should one of us...uh...deal with him?"

Lois knew what that meant. A gunshot to the head at some back alley in the dead of night.

"Well," said Luthor. "Not necessarily. Mob bosses such as yourself need to be feared. A businessman such as myself, on the other hand, is an entirely different matter. This Kent person did convey a concern that the public would inevitably feel after recent events, so in a way he did me a favor by pointing it out. So, no. We won't deal with him, as you put it. Not yet anyway."

"You're call boss," said Mannheim.

Lois, meanwhile, sighed, admitting that it would probably be the right thing to warn Clark about this when she saw him. Clark, meanwhile, imagined a bunch of hired goons trying to do him in and grinned.

"In the meantime," said Luthor. "I've got the press distracted with most of my experimental technology. We can now talk about the one can I can afford to keep secret."

"The ship," said Mannheim.

The ship? Thought Lois. Clark's ship?

"Indeed," said Luthor. "The single most important find of the twentieth century. I am very close to locating it. We recovered a sample meteorite that fell on the same day, a green crystal, and it has elements in it not found on the current periodic table. By this point no one doubts it is extraterrestrial in origin, and soon it will be ours for the taking. I'll give you the details now."

That made the men in the room much happier. Advanced alien technology? Yes please! Lois was even more ecstatic than before. Selling that to men like Mannheim? Forget the police, the army would be knocking on Luthor's doors soon once this recording went public. It all made the chance to see her army dad again a welcome prospect for once.

And with alien technology in the mix, her dad would be the first one there. He had a thing for testing new weapons of destruction.

Clark, in the other hand, knew for a certainty that he had to find the ship first. Now it wasn't just personal. Luthor had just raised the stakes considerably. He couldn't allow that kind of technology to fall into the hands of men like this.

The next moment Clark heard something. Looking he saw Mercy Graves strolling through the corridors, a stern look on her face. Did she know Clark and Lois were there?

…

Rudy Jones, meanwhile, was still stuck on the drain pipe, calling for Superman. He was really getting desperate. His Landlord was above him, yelling angrily, and the crowd below was laughing at him. The more Rudy screamed for Superman, the more the laughed. Rudy realized they had caught on to his scheme get Superman there.

Then he heard the fire truck approach.

"Oh," muttered Rudy. "Great."