A Shadow in the Spotlight

""Yeahh!" Jason shouted through the network. He had been given permission to pilot the Dragula today and while Dick and Barbara stayed close by on the Ghosts. Kara had pulled the asshole card today and was in an old bus to serve as a mobile operations center should the need arise.

"Do you have to yell like that?" asked Dick soulfully.

"Let him have his fun. It's not often he gets to sit in the big one. Besides, he's still in turkey fever!" laughed Barbara, checking the gauges to see if anything was happening nearby.

"Then he shouldn't have eaten so much!" said Kara, bored. She sat inside the van and watched the on-board cameras of the vehicles. On the side, she listened to the police radio. Apparently, the Gotham police had started using Lex's new vehicles. In a big show, Lex had arranged for specially selected police forces to drive the newest vehicles in a parade across the street and from there spread out all over the city. From today on, they were on the streets and the press was already cheering in the highest tones. Unfortunately, neither Barbara's father nor Bruce were particularly pleased about this action.

"Do you know what the boss is doing by any chance?" asked Barbara after a long pause.

"What do you mean?" asked Dick, avoiding using names on the radio like everyone else. It wasn't just since Lex that they had adopted an iron discipline, but since Lex had been in town something had changed.

"I mean that he's always in the workshop with the mechanic... and seems nervous." Barbara said quietly.

"Nervous? The boss man?" said Jason in amazement. "What makes you think that? I've never seen him nervous. Does he even know what that word means? “?

"Trust me, boy blunder. He's been acting weird. It started when the Moneyman showed up. Do you think there's something we don't know?" asked Barbara.

"Digital... was that a serious question?" said Dick calmly and when he got no answer he continued. "I've known the boss the longest and trust me... He's not nervous. He's cautious. He knows something about the Moneyman that we don't know. Probably shouldn't know."

"You think...the Moneyman's gonna give us any trouble? I think he's harmless?" asked Jason, growling at his nickname.

"Dude honestly?" asked Kara now, amused. After all, Bruce was only considered a harmless playboy too.

"Yeah... okay... never mind the question. But is the Moneyman dangerous?" asked Jason now a bit calmer while driving the Dragula through the streets without attracting attention.

"He knows the Moneyman better than we do, and if there is something he isn't telling us, it is for a very good reason.... Something's he knows are too much even for us." Dick said worriedly and steered his bike onto a road that ran parallel to Jason's.

"Blue's right. We should stop worrying about it. He'll tell us what we need to know. He always has. We should focus on our job now." Kara said, then tried to change the subject. "Digital. How did you crack the firewall so quickly?"

" It was simple. The firewalls are lousy. I really thought this moneybag from Metropolis would come up with better software. However, this nutcase seems to have just brought some new toys. You got any info yet, Silver?"

"First... no. No sign of our car yet, secondly... why am I Silver?" asked Kara annoyed.

"Simple, because Latex Babe is already taken!" laughed Dick as Jason connected.

"Hey team. I've got something here. Looks like we found it. Switching to Kley Street. Distance about a mile. Ghosts. Formation Alpha. Van, I'm putting the systems on your screen."

Immediately everyone was highly focused and moving. Kara turned to the monitors and had various systems loaded on the monitors that were still free.

"Acknowledge! Police are already on it too. Suspicious high-speed vehicle. I'm directing you to the current position."

Jason grinned inside the Dragula and activated battle mode. Immediately the windows darkened as the additional bulletproof armor went up. The HUD activated and flashed all the information he needed directly onto the windshield. The course was projected directly onto the road by Kara and so he could concentrate fully on driving. Without any major problems he managed to get behind Finch's car and was sure that he had already been noticed because the vehicle in front of him started to accelerate. He probably could have outrun anyone else, but Jason just smiled as he pushed the accelerator to the limit. The electric motors on all 4 wheels hummed barely audibly as the acceleration pressed him into the seat.

"Don't get cocky boy. Stay on him. I'll be through the firewall in a minute." Said Kara who was about to get through Finch's security systems one by one. She wasn't as good at it as Barbara, but she had always considered human security systems to be somewhat antiquated. She had to admit, though, that Finch had made an impressive leap. He had really upgraded the vehicle massively in the short time. Just before she cracked the system, a red triangle suddenly flashed on the monitor.

"What is...?" she asked as she looked at the symbol more closely. The computer was already determining the presumed route of the object when she turned pale. "DRAGULA! GET OUT OF THE WAY!" she yelled into the radio when she saw it was a collision course.

Even though Jason was perhaps the youngest on the team no one could deny he had amazing potential. He instinctively jerked the handlebars around and reduced speed. Just in time, because from a side alley a vehicle came towards him that looked like something out of a science fiction film. Jason only managed to avoid a collision by a hair's breadth.

"What is that?" he shouted excitedly as he looked around hastily. It took him some effort to maintain control at this speed and a dozen warning signs lit up in the cockpit. When he finally regained control, he saw in the rearview camera that the unknown vehicle had moved into position behind him and was stuck to him.

"I'm scanning!" said Kara nervously, displaying all the information the Dragula was providing. It took a few seconds for the computer to recognize and classify the vehicle. Pale as a corpse, she slid back into her chair and tried to keep a calm voice. "Boy Blunder. Get out of here."

"What are you talking about Silver? I can handle one of those things, can't I?" Jason replied with a grin and had regained his composure.

"Quit playing hard to get!" Kara snapped at him. "I'm running this mission! Abort! IMMEDIATELY!" she snapped at him.

Even the cheeky Jason could tell Kara was worried and his hands clenched around the steering wheel. "Roger that Silver. Disengage the enemy." He said grudgingly and accelerated. The vehicle behind him looked like a super-heavy armored Humvee and couldn't possibly keep up with his speed. But his grin vanished immediately when he felt a bump. Startled, he looked at the rear camera and saw that this monster behind him had rammed him. A glance at the speedometer clearly showed him that they were at almost 180 miles and yet this monster weighing tons was able to keep up behind him.

"Uh. Silver. Just out of curiosity. What is that?"

"That's the LL-1313, nicknamed the Tumbler. A super heavy, highly mobile combat vehicle. Heavily armored, top speed is over 230 miles. Digital. Boy needs our help. Break formation."

"Copy Silver."

"Copy Silver."

She heard Barbara and Dick say at the same time and both bikes moved to sit directly behind the tumbler.

"Okay. Commencing assault." Said Digital and immediately Kara took control of the bike. As good as she was, simultaneous hacking and a high-speed pursuit was too much for one person.

"Don't worry, boy blunder. I'm on it. In a few seconds he'll be ... ARGHH!" she yelled all at once and Kara could see the Ghost's symbols go out.

"BABS!!!" she yelled out, not even realizing she had used a clear name.

"Don't worry. I'm still alive. But that thing hacked my system and activated my brakes. The Ghost is junk... I'm out." Said Barbara, trying to sound strong, even though she had taken some nasty scrapes. The suit had prevented the worst and yet she was no longer able to help. It was almost two miles to the van and in her condition, it would take her too long to get there. She sighed as she initiated the Ghost's self-destruct and disappeared into the shadows.

"Take over attack." Dick said, sounding as calm as if it was the most normal thing in the world. "And mind your language. We don't want the old man to get angry!"

Jason had his hands full avoiding the little traffic while keeping his distance from the tumbler. "Uh. Silver. Digital. I think this thing is trying to hack me. I'm getting a warning signal here!"

"Silver?" asked Babs, cursing as she realized how helpless she just was.

"I'm on it. But whoever's driving this thing is good. He's already through the first 3 firewalls. Four more and he has control of the vehicle. I'll try to slow him down. I know a few tricks from my old school." Kara said and realized that she had a worthy opponent in the driver. At the same time, she realized that the driver was trying to steer Jason in a certain direction. "Boy. There's a massive roadblock ahead. I don't see an alternate route. He's led you into a trap. This roadblock has kept radio silence until now."

"Options?" asked Jason who was starting to get nervous.

"Gargoyle. Hold course." Everyone suddenly heard Bruce's voice on the network.

"Boss man? That's 12 vehicles. How am I supposed to get through that? I don't drive a tank!" asked Jason, trying to look cool, but the voice that answered him was more than clear.

" Hold...course!"

"Aye. Hold course!" replied Jason, stepping on the throttle. Dick, on the other hand, seemed to lurch all at once as his front axle locked up and he rolled over. But he couldn't concentrate on that now. At the end of the road he could already see 12 cars with blue lights. While the normal police cars would not have been a problem, the 2 heavy troop carriers worried him more. Even with his reinforced armor he would simply get stuck on them. The Dragulaweighed about a tenth of one of them. Even with the speed he had, he wouldn't be able to break through. "Boss-man!" he said with a slight hint of nervousness.

"Hold your course!" he heard Bruce's voice and closed his eyes. He just had to trust Bruce now. He would never let anything happen to him. Determined, he opened his eyes and pushed the pedal to the metal.

Just before he reached the barrier, the two troop carriers were flung aside like toys. Something black rammed into the barrier from the opposite side, pushing the two troop carriers aside. The policemen hastily jumped aside as they were attacked from the wrong side. Jason saw a tiny gap and with a loud screech as his side tore along one of the vehicles, he pushed through the opening. As he did so, he glanced at the vehicle that had smashed through the barrier so effortlessly.

"Cool!" it escaped him.

The tumbler behind him braked hard and stood across the road. The driver could not be seen but the roaring engine bellowed brutally as the heavily armored vehicle settled behind the newly emerged car.

Dick stood at the side of the road as 2 vehicles shot past him. The first was a long, flat black car that looked kind of angular. The driver's cab was far back on the vehicle and was completely closed to view. It was about 6 meters long and shot past him with a loud screech. No sooner had this black beauty passed him than he knew where the screech was coming from. A massive jet engine could be seen at the rear, spewing out a flame 2 meters long. Behind the vehicle, Dick could now see the Tumbler from the front for the first time. The front axle was mounted separately and protruded slightly. The cockpit was right between the wheels and the Tumbler was also equipped with a rocket engine.

"Uh... Boss-Man?" he asked in amazement as the two vehicles disappeared onto the bridge.

"Radio discipline!" was all he heard, and Kara grinned.

"That's our boss man. Always an ace up his sleeve!"

Bruce sat in the cockpit of the K1 and looked at the consoles in front of him. He had achieved what he wanted to achieve. To attract the attention of Lex Luthor. He knew Lex was behind the wheel of the Tumbler and that made the vehicle even more dangerous.

"Digital attack detected." Lit up a console and Bruce activated the countermeasures. It was a special program he had written himself. The only person he trusted to beat it was Barbara. However, Lex was not one of the smartest and most dangerous people in the world for nothing.

"Computer. Activate nail lock."

"Nail lock not operational. System not yet installed."

"Computer. Activate EMP lance!" he tried again.

"EMP lance not operational. System not yet installed." Replied the computer mechanically.

"Computer. Activate cloaking device." Sighed Bruce with a grimace.

"Cloaking device not operational. System not yet installed."

"Computer. Name one system installed!"

"Seat heater 100% operational."

Even the usually stubborn Bruce had to grin briefly at this statement. "Well, let's do it the hard way. "Let's see if this works at least!" he muttered to himself and flipped a switch. Almost at the same moment, all the streetlights within a 100m radius went up and several neon lights exploded.

He could hear Kara cursing something Kryptonian over the radio in amazement. "Boss-man?" he heard and could hear the fear in her voice.

"Don't worry about it. I just don't want to make the front page." He said, at least trying to sound reassuring, but with Lex Luthor and an LL-1313 on his ass, it probably didn't seem very convincing. The Bat-Mobile was far from fully operational. The armor was only 50% installed and most of the systems were not yet in place. In its current state, he would never be able to escape a fully operational Tumbler without giving the vehicle away. And he couldn't afford to do that.

"Old man. I need the backup. Call the school. I need the heavy equipment." He said, and Alfred replied calmly and matter-of-factly as always.

"You realize what this means boss man? It's going to cost you!"

"Yeah, I realize." Said Bruce calmly knowing what he meant but having no choice.

Lex

Lex was enjoying this chase even more than the one before. The vehicle just before had been nothing more than a little gimmick. Not a real opponent, but this... this was something else entirely. He had tried hacking but found that he hadn't made any progress for over five minutes. He had tried EMP pulses, but the vehicle in front of him was at least military grade, probably higher. Even state-of-the-art military technology had its weaknesses. Weaknesses Lex had figured out years ago. However, he could not easily disable this vehicle and the driver was incredibly good. Lex had to use everything he had to keep up. The mass and inertia of the Tumbler were an obstacle to him, but Lex knew exactly how to drive it.

What bothered him most, however, was the sensor-repelling coating the vehicle in front of him must have had. For the past few minutes it had been emitting a permanent EMP pulse that instantly disabled any camera. This EMP had no effect on the Tumbler, of course, but still he was unable to get a clear picture of the vehicle. Something about the vehicle was distorting the optical recording equipment and so Lex could only rely on his eyes.

"Warning. Supersonic object detected." He heard the tinny voice of the on-board computer and saw something approaching fast on the radar. Sensor readings put it at Mach 12 now.

"Fire countermeasures!" said Lex and whatever was approaching did not respond to the decoys. The only object he knew of that was as fast and as little as that was Superman. However, he was sure the Man of Steel was very far away right now.

"Collision alert!" it suddenly sounded, but far too late.

As if he had hit a solid wall, Lex was thrown into the 8-point harness. All around him the Airbacks shot forward and prevented the worst. Still, stars danced before his eyes as he slid back into the chair. Dazed, he looked around, trying to understand what had just happened. His eyes wandered to a monitor that showed the damage to the tumbler. But it couldn't be. It looked like half the chassis had bent around a single point. The sensor data showed that he had hit an immovable object at almost 160miles.

Confused, he shook his eyes and tried to silence the humming in his head. The armor and protective systems had held. The Tumbler might have been wrecked, but it would take a significantly greater force than a crash like that to pose a serious threat to the pilot.

Just as he thought that, he heard metal bending. In front of his eyes, 10 fingers pierced the armor that was supposed to protect his pilot's cabin. He had designed it himself with the latest alloys and made it so strong that even a battle tank would have problems. With eyes wide open, he could now watch as the fingers bent around the steel and simply tore the entire cabin out of its anchorage. 2 red-hot eyes and a blonde mane were the last thing he saw before he activated the emergency teleport.

"What the hell was that?" he gasped as he emerged into his office in Metropolis and Merci looked at him.

"Is everything all right, Mr. Luthor? Did Superman slow you down or something?"

"That was' t Superman´s fault. That one wanted me dead!"