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Fan Fiction: Short Stories
Chapter 1: The Mayor's Abduction
The mysterious car crash made news the next day around New York's social scene. From The Times to The Post, every paper detailed the incident that left police baffled. How did the car crash? Who pulled out the deceased driver? Was there a passenger involved with the crash? No one could be sure. Moments later, the impressive cab pulled up to a deserted, grimy brick building somewhere in the heart of downtown. As the cab door flew open, out came Lamont, who in turn, gripped Margo Lane's delicate hand and guided her from the car. Moe's cab suddenly sped away from the dark scene as Lamont and Margo approached the building's shadowy entrance through a dark side alley. Lamont fished for an ancient skeleton key from his tuxedo pocket and upon finding it, inserted it into a nearly unseen keyhole hidden by a discreet metal casing. Suddenly the iron door slid into the brick siding, revealing a large entrance with steps descending into a black pit. Years ago as he traveled in the Orient, he learned a baffling secret: the hypnotic power to cloud men's minds and become invisible. From the lush forests and through the primordial sands of time, he finally conquered his fears. No longer would he wonder the earth in search of something greater, hurting and damaging those in his way… instead he would strive for goodness. He is The Shadow, a mysterious crime fighter doomed and blessed by the Ancients to combat crime. Shaking his past from his thoughts, he stepped inside the dark place, holding Margo's hand, following the steps until a dim light appeared through another door. Easily pushing it open, they stepped into the Sanctum, The Shadow's lair. With the Sanctum's main purpose being a communication headquarters, The Shadow and his closet companions frequented the den to deliberate and keep crime at a minimum. Approaching a large desk, Lamont sat behind it in a leather chair and picked up a telephone receiver. Pushing a flashing button and speaking into the receiver, the wall behind the desk parted and disappeared. Before them plastered on the wall was a closed circuit television screen. A broadcast immediately came through from Burbank, The Shadow's communication agent, whose chief priority was to keep contact between The Shadow and his agents. Burbank was indispensable in the Shadow's organization, for when an agent needed to report to the Shadow, Burbank sent them through a special, unspecified device putting them through to the closed circuit television in the Shadow's sanctum. "Hello Burbank," Lamont started, replacing the receiver as he stood from his chair to speak with Burbank. "Margo told me about the Mayor's abduction. Care to elaborate old friend?" Through the television screen, a lanky man with thinning dark hair spoke, his voice shrill and sharp. "Cardona sent me a letter from the classified files at police headquarters. The police know about as much as the letter claims at this point. I'll read it to you now," Burbank said opening the letter from a manila envelope. "Beware you fools, I have the Mayor. This city owes me and I am taking my payment now. But you will get a chance to get your Mayor back. We are going to play a game with his life. All you must do within two weeks of receiving this message, is figure out just where it is in the city that the Mayor currently resides. If you find him, he's yours, but for a price. You must pay me in the amount of $100,000,000. If my demands are not met, then take heed… I will strike. If the Mayor does not cooperate with me in full at any time then there will be HELL to pay. Remember, you have two weeks.""The strange part of it Boss, is that no one has heard anything from any kind of Mad Doctor," Burbank informed after reading the note. Lamont shot an intense but confused gaze at Burbank, and then to Margo as he heard the words that came from the letter. "We'll have to be cautious of everyone. Burbank, send out a signal to Alanis Wattanabee, my newest agent. Let her know that The Shadow requires her assistance." The next night, the air was cold and still, just like the Mayor's mansion. Dark and peaceful, the nineteenth century building had a strange eeriness due to its sheer size. The manor appeared as if it had not been lived in for some time, even though the abduction of its owner occurred recently. Suddenly, the main entrance into the three-story labyrinth was bombarded by the wind as the massive double doors flew open. Appearing unexpectedly, a figure loomed quietly in a dark corridor of the main hallway. With another rush of wind, the doors closed as the mysterious man began to search for any possible clues to the Mayor's abduction. Scaling a grand staircase to the second floor, the figure noticed a beam of light escaping through a narrow slit from a massive doorframe that illuminated the ceramic tiles and elegant walls of the hallway. Approaching the Mayor's luxurious master bedroom, he entered slowly. With no one waiting inside, he realized that the light was from the Mayor's balcony door. The French doors leading outside were left cracked open, and knowing that the police left everything as it was on night of the disappearance, The Shadow knew the Mayor had been abducted during slumber, kidnapped by way of his own terrace. With the bed sheets ravaged and an old Victorian nightstand tipped over, a struggle was evident. As he approached a nearby window next to the open door, something caught his eye. On the floor - a matchbook - he noticed, picking it up to examine it. The matchbook only had one match torn out and the logo on the front side was that of a local downtown tavern known as The Shady Inn. Fumbling the tiny item through his fingers, he noticed something scribbled on the back - Martin Kreeger. Believing this was the best, if only, clue he would find tonight, he swiftly raced through the balcony doors and glared down the terrace to the pristine landscape with an almost evil stare. Taking a leap, The Shadow was gone. The Shady Inn, a place that only decent, respectable people could afford. A place that was as safe as home, yet bore the charm of a popular vacation spot. The kind of place that even the most jaded of tourists would enjoy; it bore an old world charm, with its various antique items. The place boasted a neat taproom that was nothing more than a large room with tables and chairs for dining, a jukebox sporting country western tunes, and a bar in the front. Tonight the place was nearly deserted but for a short, stocky bald guy, hunched over at the bar, smoking a thick black cigar and drinking some cheap booze holding conversation with the equally stocky bartender. "So Mac, you seeing a lot of business these days?" the man with cigar inquired. "Just enough to support the wife Martin. You know I don't own the place. If I did, man would that be a lot of dough." "Yeah I'll bet," the man agreed with a laugh. The man was Martin Kreeger, a regular at this place. He was kind of a mysterious man that never talked much to anyone except the bartender. As the two men chatted, the door suddenly flew open. The sound of a gust of wind permeated their ears. "Damn wind," the bartender moaned, as he hurried from behind the bar to close the door. "Strange weather for May ain't it," Kreeger responded to the annoying distraction of wind. "You said it Martin," the bartender agreed, returning to his post behind the bar. As Kreeger lit up another cigar, the bartender began washing shot glasses. Suddenly the stocky bartender dropped one as he saw the shadow of a lone figure on the back wall of the taproom. "You all right Mac?" Kreeger questioned. The bartender gasped in horror as he saw the apparent figure appear from out of the back wall. The figure seemed to move from out of the darkness, becoming all too apparent. It was The Shadow. Sinister laughter filled the room, stunning Kreeger, causing him to fall off of his bar stool. With that, the bartender pulled out a shotgun from behind the bar and fired a shot. The laughing grew louder, and suddenly the figure was gone. "Where'd he go?" Kreeger asked. "My God, it's the devil himself," the bartender declared. From out of nowhere The Shadow appeared behind the bar grabbing the bartender and throwing him to the floor, then directed his attention to Kreeger. As The Shadow moved from behind the bar, Kreeger pulled out a small snub-nosed revolver. The Shadow smacked the piece out of his hands and grabbed him, lifting him off the floor. By now the bartender stood up and ran out of the room via a small door behind the bar. The Shadow stared at the terrified Kreeger and spoke. "Martin Kreeger, you were involved in the abduction of the mayor….Did you think I wouldn't find you?" Kreeger responds in panic & fright, "You, The Shadow….I heard you weren't real - you don't exist." "Yes, yes, I'm just a figment of your pathetic imagination, a product of your drunkenness. Now, tell me who this Mad Doctor is!" "I can't, I can't! I'll be killed!" Without warning, The Shadow dropped him. Kreeger fell to the floor and began screaming in terror. The Shadow backed away from his quarry and began waving his hands with mysterious gestures. The Shadow's mysterious girasol ring flared many different shades. Kreeger immediately rose to his feet. His eyes were empty, and he gazed at The Shadow with a blank stare. The Shadow had put the man in a trance. He suddenly began to verbalize what The Shadow needed to hear. "I do not know the man's name, but I do know that he is the leader of a powerful organized crime syndicate. I've never even seen his face. I don't answer to him….I answer to one of his guys. I just work for some guy at some dive called The Big Mug... they don't tell me anything. That is all," Kreeger stated in a mystified daze. "Are you sure that is all you know?" The Shadow grimly inquired. "That's it. I swear it," Kreeger claimed. Suddenly, The Shadow grabbed the man by the neck and tossed him behind the bar with great ease. Kreeger's neck snapped with a loud crack as he was thrown. The door flew open and the strange wind sounded. As Kreeger now lay paralyzed behind the bar counter, no apparent evidence of his mysterious aggressor could be found. |
The Shadow: Master of Darkness
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