Fan Fiction: Crossovers
Why Wasn't I There?

  Stephen slowly walked back down the stairs with his face buried in the file.

  "Evening uncle." He said without looking up.

  "You're still as observant I notice." Answered Victor from the far side of the sanctum.

  "Your first lesson to me," replied Stephen, still not looking at the previous Shadow who ruled the night. "Was that you cant let your guard down, because an opponent can strike when you aren't looking. Hell of a way to get a reminder huh?"

  "I was right." Announced Victor. "Your blaming yourself for this aren't you?"

  "Bravo!" applauded Stephen angrily. "Brilliant deduction."

  Victor felt the words hit him, and let it go. "You're a Cranston, that's for sure. You can't blame yourself."

  "Have you come all this way just to lecture me too? Because you should know, Peter already tried."

  "You know, being psychic doesn't make you omniscient, it just makes things noisy."

  That made Stephen angrier. "You think I don't know that? I heard it. I heard it in my mind, and I still didn't figure it out!"

  "What makes you think you could have?"

  "Because I'm supposed to! That's my whole mission in life. I predict the crooks; I stop them. The one time I don't, and 5000 people die!"

  Victor struggled for words. "You don't think your being just a tad arrogant? They would have been preparing this for months, you think that it just because of you that they succeeded? That doesn't strike you as a bit egotistical?"

  "The fact that they were planning this for months is the reason I should have known. I had months to find out, months to figure it out, months to plan how to stop it. I usually do that in hours. Why couldn't I do it in months?"

  "Being angry at yourself is pointless. Nobody is that powerful. Not you, not me, not even Bin Laden. Hurling yourself headlong into this without thought or regard for yourself, is a self-destructive path. And you know where that leads."

  Stephen bit his lip. He knew his uncle was right, but he did not want to admit it, because he still thought he should have stopped it. "If this had happened before I became the Shadow," he said finally. "If this had happened when you wore the hat and cloak, would you be this forgiving on yourself?"

  "After I finally figured out that there was no way to know about a plot to kill President John F. Kennedy? Yes."

  Stephen snorted. "Well maybe. But the fact is, if I had known, then there were a dozen places I could have found out. And you know this wont be the last attack. So I will forgive myself, when I have tracked down the next guys planning something like this, when I have taken them apart, and when I hand them over to a riot made up of angry New Yorkers."

  Victor gulped. Stephen's voice was low with silky menace. Victor was familiar with that kind of rage. It was the same thing that every Cranston had gone through, and it could only lead to ruin.

  "You may have forgiven yourself, but didn't you want to take that assassin apart?" asked Stephen.

  "I didn't get that far. My father threw me across the room with his mind when I still didn't get his point after giving me this same lecture."

  Stephen laughed, the tension eased.

  "So don't make me throw you across the room. There are a lot of valuable antiques in here."

  Stephen laughed again, relaxing himself further than he had been in days. "Okay. Deal. But I am not going to let this happen again."

  "Of course you wont." Assured Victor. "Now, remind yourself that you are not omniscient. Don't fall prey to evil yourself. Fight the evil, dont become it."

  Stephen looked in the mirror, he saw the hard lines on his face, and he shuddered. "Have I really been getting so close to the line that Peter sent you down here?"

  "Peter didn't come to me. I decided to come myself."

  "Am I that obvious?"

  "Yes." Victor answered without hesitation. " I could hear your angry thoughts from Ground Zero that day."

  Stephen sighed. "I guess I think loudly. Even for a telepath."

  "But not for a Cranston."

  Stephen laughed once more at the old family joke, and felt normal for the first time in days. "Thanks uncle. I needed that."

  Victor nodded and stood to leave. "You know Stephen. The first, and hardest lesson I learnt on the dark night streets, was that no matter how strong you are, no matter how fast you can move, you can't save everybody. But you still keep trying, and fighting against impossible odds, and uncounted opponents. And I know you'll beat this one."

  Stephen gave a small smile. "Thanks uncle. But I'll tell you the truth. I'm scared to death about what the next attack might be."

  "I know you are. But despite your fear, you'll handle it, and you will prevail. Because who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men?"

  Stephen sighed. "I do."

  "Thatta boy. Good luck." Victor left the sanctum, his nephew behind him, with a calmer air for the first time.