LIGHT AND SHADOW
CHAPTER VI. TRACES
(Disclaimer: Disclaimer: Cranston, Lane, Scott, and their respective supporting casts are sadly, not my property. I'm creatively molesting them for my own sinister purposes.) *NOTE: Come on, people! Gimme reviews! I keep posting because I have the nifty enhanced statistics thingy that tells me you're reading, but can't get any better if you don't tell me what you think! That and it feeds my ego for you to review me! Have a heart, guys!
There was a tension in the air as the cloaked Shadow and the grim Green Lantern looked out on New York City from the roof of the warehouse where they had forged their uneasy alliance. Neither man trusted the other, each believing that the other man had some dire purpose in mind. War makes strange bedfellows, however, and the two men were about to wage war.
It had been one day since the two vigilantes had agreed to put aside their differences and unite in search of the stolen Atom Bomb. Now the moon shone full over the city that never sleeps, and the two men spoke in cold voices.
"I have spoken with my network." The Shadow rasped. "No one knows much, but what little is known is that someone is trying to gather the city's criminal element."
" 'Why' is the question."
"Obviously."
"I've attempted to have my ring locate the bomb, but without knowing what I'm looking for."
"We don't know for sure that the bomb is in this city. It could very well still be in Gotham."
Lantern shook his head and scowled even deeper.
"I've spoken with my military 'friends' there. They assure me that they've ruled out Gotham. Apparently they have a way of locating whatever it is that powers the bomb, but they have chosen not to share that information with me. 'Security' reasons."
"Perhaps it's the radiation."
"Radiation?"
"A certain scientific authority that is in my debt informs me that the metal which powered Shi-Wan Khan's device, Bronzium, emits a specific kind of radiation, which may be possible to detect."
"This might be something to go on."
"I'll find you when I know more."
There was a rustling sound and when Lantern turned around, the Shadow was gone. As he floated toward the night sky, the Emerald Avenger mused on his partnership with New York's most secretive mystery man. He did not care for the Shadow, his methods, or his obvious flirtation with crime. His strange connection with Shi-Wan Khan made things all the more unpalatable to Gotham's defender. It was things like this that filled his mind as he lit on the roof of the Monolith to resume his civilian identity. The view from the Monolith was a spectacular one, that is, spectacular for anyone not used to a birds-eye view of the cityscape. The beacon-capped towers of Manhattan lost a bit of their majesty once one had used those beacons to avoid collisions.
Lantern removed his normal clothes from the duffel he had concealed on the roof and slipped into trousers and a shirt. With his "working clothes" back in the bag, he used his ring to open the locked stairwell door and made his way back down into the hotel. As he walked down the flights of stairs, he came to the sudden realization that he had never fully explored the Monolith. He vaguely remembered an old new story some years before about the building, but couldn't bring it to mind. Cranston's comments at the Cobalt came to mind. something about the original owner.
Alan retrieved a jacket from his room and went down to the hotel lobby, where he walked toward the desk clerk, a graying older man with a look of stern reliability.
"What can I do for you, sir?"
"I was just wondering a few things about the hotel, is all."
"I know all there is to know about the Monolith, sir. What would you like to know?"
"Well, firstly, I'd like to say that the management here is splendid, I've been very pleased during my stay here."
"We strive to please, sir."
"And you succeed. I was actually wondering how long that the current management had been in charge of the hotel?"
"For as long as I can remember, sir."
Alan restrained the look of surprise that attempted to cross his face. Cranston had said that he had acquired it from someone.
"Really? And how long have you been here?"
"I was one of the first staff brought onboard, I am proud to say."
"Is that so? Well, congratulations, and thank you for your help."
Walking away from the desk, Alan looked upward at the large vaulted ceilings of the lobby. Cranston had secrets, the Monolith had secrets, and they seemed to be wrapped up in one another. Layer upon layer surrounded the elusive Lamont Cranston. One thing was certain, though. There was something to be found in the Monolith.
"Lamont."
The hurried tone of Margot's voice in his mind caused Lamont Cranston to stop momentarily in the street, very nearly getting him hit by a passing car.
"What is it, Margot?"
"It's about Scott."
"I'm on my way."
Turning a street corner, he hailed the speeding Sunshine Cab, which squealed to a halt in front of him.
"Home, Moe."
In his manor, Lamont was quickly briefed by Margot. Scott was poking into things at the Monolith. This was no time for some over-intrepid reporter to be puttering around in a place containing so many of the Shadow's secrets. Even Lamont had not fully explored the labyrinths of Shi-Wan Khan's former headquarters. Who knew what traps lay in store there, and what unpleasant truths about the man who had once been Iyenko, the Butcher of Lassa.
"Scott is becoming more than an annoyance. He is becoming a danger. We need to see to it that he decides it to be in his best interest to return to Gotham. Soon."
"How, Lamont?"
"I think it's time that Mr. Scott had a visit from the Shadow."
CHAPTER VI. TRACES
(Disclaimer: Disclaimer: Cranston, Lane, Scott, and their respective supporting casts are sadly, not my property. I'm creatively molesting them for my own sinister purposes.) *NOTE: Come on, people! Gimme reviews! I keep posting because I have the nifty enhanced statistics thingy that tells me you're reading, but can't get any better if you don't tell me what you think! That and it feeds my ego for you to review me! Have a heart, guys!
There was a tension in the air as the cloaked Shadow and the grim Green Lantern looked out on New York City from the roof of the warehouse where they had forged their uneasy alliance. Neither man trusted the other, each believing that the other man had some dire purpose in mind. War makes strange bedfellows, however, and the two men were about to wage war.
It had been one day since the two vigilantes had agreed to put aside their differences and unite in search of the stolen Atom Bomb. Now the moon shone full over the city that never sleeps, and the two men spoke in cold voices.
"I have spoken with my network." The Shadow rasped. "No one knows much, but what little is known is that someone is trying to gather the city's criminal element."
" 'Why' is the question."
"Obviously."
"I've attempted to have my ring locate the bomb, but without knowing what I'm looking for."
"We don't know for sure that the bomb is in this city. It could very well still be in Gotham."
Lantern shook his head and scowled even deeper.
"I've spoken with my military 'friends' there. They assure me that they've ruled out Gotham. Apparently they have a way of locating whatever it is that powers the bomb, but they have chosen not to share that information with me. 'Security' reasons."
"Perhaps it's the radiation."
"Radiation?"
"A certain scientific authority that is in my debt informs me that the metal which powered Shi-Wan Khan's device, Bronzium, emits a specific kind of radiation, which may be possible to detect."
"This might be something to go on."
"I'll find you when I know more."
There was a rustling sound and when Lantern turned around, the Shadow was gone. As he floated toward the night sky, the Emerald Avenger mused on his partnership with New York's most secretive mystery man. He did not care for the Shadow, his methods, or his obvious flirtation with crime. His strange connection with Shi-Wan Khan made things all the more unpalatable to Gotham's defender. It was things like this that filled his mind as he lit on the roof of the Monolith to resume his civilian identity. The view from the Monolith was a spectacular one, that is, spectacular for anyone not used to a birds-eye view of the cityscape. The beacon-capped towers of Manhattan lost a bit of their majesty once one had used those beacons to avoid collisions.
Lantern removed his normal clothes from the duffel he had concealed on the roof and slipped into trousers and a shirt. With his "working clothes" back in the bag, he used his ring to open the locked stairwell door and made his way back down into the hotel. As he walked down the flights of stairs, he came to the sudden realization that he had never fully explored the Monolith. He vaguely remembered an old new story some years before about the building, but couldn't bring it to mind. Cranston's comments at the Cobalt came to mind. something about the original owner.
Alan retrieved a jacket from his room and went down to the hotel lobby, where he walked toward the desk clerk, a graying older man with a look of stern reliability.
"What can I do for you, sir?"
"I was just wondering a few things about the hotel, is all."
"I know all there is to know about the Monolith, sir. What would you like to know?"
"Well, firstly, I'd like to say that the management here is splendid, I've been very pleased during my stay here."
"We strive to please, sir."
"And you succeed. I was actually wondering how long that the current management had been in charge of the hotel?"
"For as long as I can remember, sir."
Alan restrained the look of surprise that attempted to cross his face. Cranston had said that he had acquired it from someone.
"Really? And how long have you been here?"
"I was one of the first staff brought onboard, I am proud to say."
"Is that so? Well, congratulations, and thank you for your help."
Walking away from the desk, Alan looked upward at the large vaulted ceilings of the lobby. Cranston had secrets, the Monolith had secrets, and they seemed to be wrapped up in one another. Layer upon layer surrounded the elusive Lamont Cranston. One thing was certain, though. There was something to be found in the Monolith.
"Lamont."
The hurried tone of Margot's voice in his mind caused Lamont Cranston to stop momentarily in the street, very nearly getting him hit by a passing car.
"What is it, Margot?"
"It's about Scott."
"I'm on my way."
Turning a street corner, he hailed the speeding Sunshine Cab, which squealed to a halt in front of him.
"Home, Moe."
In his manor, Lamont was quickly briefed by Margot. Scott was poking into things at the Monolith. This was no time for some over-intrepid reporter to be puttering around in a place containing so many of the Shadow's secrets. Even Lamont had not fully explored the labyrinths of Shi-Wan Khan's former headquarters. Who knew what traps lay in store there, and what unpleasant truths about the man who had once been Iyenko, the Butcher of Lassa.
"Scott is becoming more than an annoyance. He is becoming a danger. We need to see to it that he decides it to be in his best interest to return to Gotham. Soon."
"How, Lamont?"
"I think it's time that Mr. Scott had a visit from the Shadow."