Part 2
Failing to find the kid after a few passes though the neighborhood the man opted to head over to the school. When he arrived the night classes were started and he considered entering though the front doors, but rejected the idea as too dangerous should someone stop him to ask who he was or where he was going.
He walked around to the back and found the entrance he had rigged earlier. The door opened easily and he walked to the stairwell and climbed up to the second floor where he quickly found the Torch office. He tried the door, but as he expected it was locked. The lock was of the same as the others he had observed earlier today and was of a type that was common in most schools. Reaching in his pocket he pulled out a set of professional lock picks and had the door open in under 20 seconds.
He entered the office and locked the door behind him. He didn't turn on the lights, but did cross over to the windows where he lowered the blinds before turning on his flashlight. He located a desk with a "Chloe Sullivan, Editor" nameplate on it and began to search it. The desk itself was also locked which was a surprise itself as most old schools usually had to settle for second hand furniture. This usually meant that the keys to any desks were long gone several owners ago. A quick inspection revealed that all of the furniture in the room was new and of the same brands along with the computer system. This probably meant a fairly recent large donation by someone. But who would put this much money into a school newspaper?
The desk lock presented less of a problem than the door lock and was opened ever quicker. He found little of value and absolutely no information that was of use to him. Turning his attention to the computer he noticed the LuthorCorp Logo on the sides. They then were probably the source of the donation. The question that immediately came to mind was why would LuthorCorp and Lionel Luthor especially be interested in a school paper in general and this one in particular.
He booted up the computer and as expected was queried for a password. He turned the computer back off and then pulled a small laptop from a case he had brought with him. He also pulled out what looked like a 3 ½'' computer disk, but this one had a small computer ribbon attached to the disk on one end and a network card attached to the other. He plugged the network card into his laptop and inserted the fake disk into the desktop computer and booted it up again.
This time when it queried for the password the laptop began to whir as it worked and after a minute provided the correct response allowing the computer to complete it's boot up.
"'Bigdumbmutant'" he said to himself. "Hmmm, interesting choice of passwords."
After he was in he turned to his laptop and ran a quick diagnostic of the Torch's system. As expected he found a topnotch security system. Unexpectedly, however, he found a set of monitoring programs in operation that would have made the most paranoid of governments proud. Every keystroke, every website, every deleted file, everything period was recorded, copied and transferred to another site on the network on a regular basis.
"That would certainly explain the level of attention the doctor has gotten lately, " he said to himself.
Fortunately, the security protocols on his laptop would prevent the monitoring program from even knowing that the desktop was in use for the time being. He began the process of transferring the contents of the hard drive to his laptop before exploring the network itself. Bringing up a second program he begin to make a map of the network. Within a few moments he found that he could bring up the main LuthorCorp network screen, which meant that this computer had a direct link to that system. Backing out of the network before he could trigger any alarms he returned to the desktop computer and began manually browsing the files.
Buried about six levels down he found a password-protected directory. Using the LockPick program on his laptop he was able to slice into the directory in a matter of seconds.
"Pinkisstupid," he muttered. "I'm starting to think that this girl might be in need of some professional help."
The directory provided him with answers to several questions. It contained a fairly copious file detailing efforts in an on-going investigation of Clark Kent, which he read with growing interest. It also contained various progress reports about said investigation and all were directed to Lionel Luthor.
"He was right," the stranger said aloud. "The kid is in danger and all because one of his friends decided to betray him for what looks like the chance to get an article in the Daily Planet."
The man shook his head in disgust. He told himself that he shouldn't be surprised at people's acts of greed. It was, after all, one of the first lessons he had been forced to learn.
His absorption in his anger almost made him miss the sound of a key turning in the lock.
"Give me a second guys, I gotta get some things out of the office then we'll head down to the Talon." A voice said from outside before a black teenage boy walked through the door.
There had been no place to hide, nor any chance to so the man settled for an attempt at a bluff.
The kid, who he immediately recognized as Pete Ross, stopped cold when he saw him sitting there and almost got knocked over by the two other boys that came in behind him.
"Who are you?" Pete demanded.
"Oh, sorry," the man said acting totally unruffled. "I'm Jeff Justice with LuthorCorp IT. Mr. Luthor wanted me to stop by and check out the system after that nasty virus the other day."
"In the dark?" Pete asked suspiciously.
The man barked a short laugh before answering. "An old layover from collage, I'm afraid. Used to working in front of computer screens at all hours of the night. It's a wonder I don't need glasses."
"Uh uh," Pete said clearly unconvinced. "You got any ID?"
The man made a show of reaching into his pocket before replying, "Must have forgotten it in the car."
Whatever Pete was going to say at that moment was interrupted by the laptop signaling that the file transfer was complete.
"What were you doing with that thing?" Pete asked pointing to the laptop.
"System check, like I said," replied the man as he quickly ejected the disk from the desktop CPU and closed his laptop.
"I think I'd better look at that if you don't mind." Pete said starting forward.
"Really, kid, come on. I'm just doing my job." He slipped the laptop and disk into its carrying case and got up from the desk slipping the strap of the case over his shoulder.
"The man said he wanted to look at your computer," said one of the other boys menacingly as he stepped forward.
"Yeah," said the other one also stepping around Pete.
"Look, kids," the man said stressing the word "kids" in an attempt at intimidation "I don't won't any trouble. I'm just doing what Mr. Luthor told me to do. Don't you know that he's very interested in Ms. Sullivan and the school paper?"
Pete started to speak, but was interrupted by the first kid who had stepped forward.
"I don't care who he's interested in, give us that computer."
"I'm leaving," the man said. "This is ridiculous."
He started around the boys when the first one grabbed his arm.
"You're not going anywhere."
The man grabbed the kid's arm with his free hand and applying pressure made him yell in pain and let go.
What happened next was so fast that later Pete was at a loss to describe it.
The second kid started forward when his friend yelled in pain. The man turned slightly toward him and hit the kid in the throat with his stiffened fingers causing him to stagger backwards tripping over a desk as he gasped for breath. The man then brought his knee up hard into the first boy's groin and as he doubled over in pain hit him in the face with his forearm causing him to drop to the floor stunned.
Pete had never been a fighter. His size had actually made him the target of a few bullies before Clark came along. When Clark wasn't with him, Pete often relied upon humor to defuse situations. He wasn't a coward though and when both of his fellow teammates were incapacitated he moved to stop their attacker even though he knew his chances were slim to none considering the skill the stranger had just demonstrated.
Jumping forward the moment the last boy hit the floor Pete threw the single best punch of his life. Unfortunately, it never landed. His fist was caught in a vice like grip and then his arm twisted inward as he was brought to his knees in pain before being shoved backwards to the floor.
The man started around him, but Pete refused to give up. Getting to his feet he made a grab for the man before he could get to the door. He was able to get a handful of the man's jacket and started to pull, but was surprised when the man stepped toward him instead of away throwing him off balance. Before he knew what happened his feet were knocked out from under him and he was thrown to the floor. Despite this Pete didn't slacken the death grip he had on the guy's jacket.
The man stared into his eyes for a moment without speaking. Seeming to give some unknown issue great thought and then he spoke.
"Pete, I don't want to fight you."
"How the hell do you know my name?!" Pete demanded.
"I was sent by Dr. Virgil Swann."
End Part 2
Failing to find the kid after a few passes though the neighborhood the man opted to head over to the school. When he arrived the night classes were started and he considered entering though the front doors, but rejected the idea as too dangerous should someone stop him to ask who he was or where he was going.
He walked around to the back and found the entrance he had rigged earlier. The door opened easily and he walked to the stairwell and climbed up to the second floor where he quickly found the Torch office. He tried the door, but as he expected it was locked. The lock was of the same as the others he had observed earlier today and was of a type that was common in most schools. Reaching in his pocket he pulled out a set of professional lock picks and had the door open in under 20 seconds.
He entered the office and locked the door behind him. He didn't turn on the lights, but did cross over to the windows where he lowered the blinds before turning on his flashlight. He located a desk with a "Chloe Sullivan, Editor" nameplate on it and began to search it. The desk itself was also locked which was a surprise itself as most old schools usually had to settle for second hand furniture. This usually meant that the keys to any desks were long gone several owners ago. A quick inspection revealed that all of the furniture in the room was new and of the same brands along with the computer system. This probably meant a fairly recent large donation by someone. But who would put this much money into a school newspaper?
The desk lock presented less of a problem than the door lock and was opened ever quicker. He found little of value and absolutely no information that was of use to him. Turning his attention to the computer he noticed the LuthorCorp Logo on the sides. They then were probably the source of the donation. The question that immediately came to mind was why would LuthorCorp and Lionel Luthor especially be interested in a school paper in general and this one in particular.
He booted up the computer and as expected was queried for a password. He turned the computer back off and then pulled a small laptop from a case he had brought with him. He also pulled out what looked like a 3 ½'' computer disk, but this one had a small computer ribbon attached to the disk on one end and a network card attached to the other. He plugged the network card into his laptop and inserted the fake disk into the desktop computer and booted it up again.
This time when it queried for the password the laptop began to whir as it worked and after a minute provided the correct response allowing the computer to complete it's boot up.
"'Bigdumbmutant'" he said to himself. "Hmmm, interesting choice of passwords."
After he was in he turned to his laptop and ran a quick diagnostic of the Torch's system. As expected he found a topnotch security system. Unexpectedly, however, he found a set of monitoring programs in operation that would have made the most paranoid of governments proud. Every keystroke, every website, every deleted file, everything period was recorded, copied and transferred to another site on the network on a regular basis.
"That would certainly explain the level of attention the doctor has gotten lately, " he said to himself.
Fortunately, the security protocols on his laptop would prevent the monitoring program from even knowing that the desktop was in use for the time being. He began the process of transferring the contents of the hard drive to his laptop before exploring the network itself. Bringing up a second program he begin to make a map of the network. Within a few moments he found that he could bring up the main LuthorCorp network screen, which meant that this computer had a direct link to that system. Backing out of the network before he could trigger any alarms he returned to the desktop computer and began manually browsing the files.
Buried about six levels down he found a password-protected directory. Using the LockPick program on his laptop he was able to slice into the directory in a matter of seconds.
"Pinkisstupid," he muttered. "I'm starting to think that this girl might be in need of some professional help."
The directory provided him with answers to several questions. It contained a fairly copious file detailing efforts in an on-going investigation of Clark Kent, which he read with growing interest. It also contained various progress reports about said investigation and all were directed to Lionel Luthor.
"He was right," the stranger said aloud. "The kid is in danger and all because one of his friends decided to betray him for what looks like the chance to get an article in the Daily Planet."
The man shook his head in disgust. He told himself that he shouldn't be surprised at people's acts of greed. It was, after all, one of the first lessons he had been forced to learn.
His absorption in his anger almost made him miss the sound of a key turning in the lock.
"Give me a second guys, I gotta get some things out of the office then we'll head down to the Talon." A voice said from outside before a black teenage boy walked through the door.
There had been no place to hide, nor any chance to so the man settled for an attempt at a bluff.
The kid, who he immediately recognized as Pete Ross, stopped cold when he saw him sitting there and almost got knocked over by the two other boys that came in behind him.
"Who are you?" Pete demanded.
"Oh, sorry," the man said acting totally unruffled. "I'm Jeff Justice with LuthorCorp IT. Mr. Luthor wanted me to stop by and check out the system after that nasty virus the other day."
"In the dark?" Pete asked suspiciously.
The man barked a short laugh before answering. "An old layover from collage, I'm afraid. Used to working in front of computer screens at all hours of the night. It's a wonder I don't need glasses."
"Uh uh," Pete said clearly unconvinced. "You got any ID?"
The man made a show of reaching into his pocket before replying, "Must have forgotten it in the car."
Whatever Pete was going to say at that moment was interrupted by the laptop signaling that the file transfer was complete.
"What were you doing with that thing?" Pete asked pointing to the laptop.
"System check, like I said," replied the man as he quickly ejected the disk from the desktop CPU and closed his laptop.
"I think I'd better look at that if you don't mind." Pete said starting forward.
"Really, kid, come on. I'm just doing my job." He slipped the laptop and disk into its carrying case and got up from the desk slipping the strap of the case over his shoulder.
"The man said he wanted to look at your computer," said one of the other boys menacingly as he stepped forward.
"Yeah," said the other one also stepping around Pete.
"Look, kids," the man said stressing the word "kids" in an attempt at intimidation "I don't won't any trouble. I'm just doing what Mr. Luthor told me to do. Don't you know that he's very interested in Ms. Sullivan and the school paper?"
Pete started to speak, but was interrupted by the first kid who had stepped forward.
"I don't care who he's interested in, give us that computer."
"I'm leaving," the man said. "This is ridiculous."
He started around the boys when the first one grabbed his arm.
"You're not going anywhere."
The man grabbed the kid's arm with his free hand and applying pressure made him yell in pain and let go.
What happened next was so fast that later Pete was at a loss to describe it.
The second kid started forward when his friend yelled in pain. The man turned slightly toward him and hit the kid in the throat with his stiffened fingers causing him to stagger backwards tripping over a desk as he gasped for breath. The man then brought his knee up hard into the first boy's groin and as he doubled over in pain hit him in the face with his forearm causing him to drop to the floor stunned.
Pete had never been a fighter. His size had actually made him the target of a few bullies before Clark came along. When Clark wasn't with him, Pete often relied upon humor to defuse situations. He wasn't a coward though and when both of his fellow teammates were incapacitated he moved to stop their attacker even though he knew his chances were slim to none considering the skill the stranger had just demonstrated.
Jumping forward the moment the last boy hit the floor Pete threw the single best punch of his life. Unfortunately, it never landed. His fist was caught in a vice like grip and then his arm twisted inward as he was brought to his knees in pain before being shoved backwards to the floor.
The man started around him, but Pete refused to give up. Getting to his feet he made a grab for the man before he could get to the door. He was able to get a handful of the man's jacket and started to pull, but was surprised when the man stepped toward him instead of away throwing him off balance. Before he knew what happened his feet were knocked out from under him and he was thrown to the floor. Despite this Pete didn't slacken the death grip he had on the guy's jacket.
The man stared into his eyes for a moment without speaking. Seeming to give some unknown issue great thought and then he spoke.
"Pete, I don't want to fight you."
"How the hell do you know my name?!" Pete demanded.
"I was sent by Dr. Virgil Swann."
End Part 2