Lex Luthor's 'Art Of Empty Glass'

Gotham. If God had elected to pick one spot on the North American continent to take a big ol' steamy dump, it had to be Gotham. It seemed like it was always dark in Gotham. Eight am… Noon… Two pm… Didn't matter. The sun never seemed to shine quite as brightly in Gotham as it shone elsewhere and the gray clouds never seemed to drift completely out of Gotham's skies as they did elsewhere. It was quite simply a perpetually dismal environment.

Lex Luthor didn't mind that sort of environment though. Much the contrary, it reminded him of where he came from. Lex Luthor grew up in the Suicide Slums of Metropolis. While nobody had blown up the nearest hospital or whatever, the Suicide Slums was still a rough neighborhood, especially for a kid to be raised in.
As Lex gazed out the black tinted window of the limousine he was traveling in he thought back to those childhood nights. His mother coughing from the bedroom, his father watching the fights and cussing from the living room of their rundown two bedroom apartment. They say pain and desperation have no discernable physical qualities. Perhaps that's true but Luthor always felt like there was a certain scent that attached to those emotions. He couldn't describe it to you but if you opened a window in the Suicide Slums on a warm summer night you could smell it. Gotham had that same scent.

Lex glanced down at his Omega watch, it was platinum and it went well with his light gray sports coat and his white Brooks Brothers dress shirt. It was just after seven. His eyes drifted down from the face of his watch to his black diamond ring. It was a masculine ring with a design almost like a Hall of Fame ring or a class ring. The diamond was sizable but not over stated. He heard legends of a black ring that could raise the dead. What power that would be. This ring wasn't going to turn Metropolis or Gotham into a George Romero movie but it was representative of who Lex Luthor was. Big, expensive, and anti-establishment. Most diamonds were clear, his was black. Being a black sheep was beneath Luthor but being a black diamond was perfectly appropriate. Of course in this town the only thing anyone cared about was "The Black Knight".

Luthor snickered and shook his head. "Batman". "Cat Woman". It was a regular gothic zoo over here. Finally the car drew to a stop. Luthor sighed and adjusted his jacket as his driver drew his door open. Luthor stepped out underneath the awning of what appeared to be a pretty upscale restaurant. The driver closed the door and stood beside it as Luthor began toward the restaurant. The doorman offered Luthor a soft smile and drew the door open. As Luthor walked through into the soft yellow lit room the sounds of Gotham faded in favor of the sounds of soft piano music.

"Good evening sir, do you have a reservation?" An apparent hostess inquired.

Lex Luthor, "I'm supposed to be meeting somebody… A Councilman Edwards…"

"Oh, of course. Right this way."

The hostess led Luthor a short distance to a bar area.

"Councilman Edwards…"

A man turned on his bar stool with a red tie.

As he saw Lex he smiled a big smile and quickly slid off the stool and extended his hand, "Mr. Luthor! I'm Councilman Bill Edwards, we spoke on the phone the other day. It's an honor to finally meet you sir."

Lex accepted his hand shake with a slight nod as he replied, "I'm sure it is."

Councilman Edwards, "Let me buy you a drink… "

Luthor nods.

Councilman Edwards, "What will it be?"

Luthor, "Johnny Walker, blue."

The Councilman nods as Lex takes a seat at a nearby table. It only takes a moment before the councilman brings their drinks to the table, setting Luthor's in front of him.

Councilman Edwards, "So, Mr. Luthor…"

Lex puts up a dismissive hand, "Please, call me Lex."

Councilman Edwards, "Lex… I hear you're interested in expanding your business into Gotham."

Lex Luthor, "That's correct."

Councilman Edwards, "Now to what extent, exactly, are you looking to bring your business to Gotham? Are we talking about just setting up some offices or are we talking about manufacturing plants or something different… To what extent are you looking to vest in our fine city?"

'Fine city?' Lex thought sarcastically. Despite his thought however, he kept his sarcasm far from his voice as he replied, "Well Bill... I assume I may call you Bill..."

Councilman Edwards, "Of course, Of course."

Lex Luthor continued, "Well Bill, I read in the paper the other day that there were rumors I wanted to build a Lex Corp tower here…"

Councilman Edwards eagerly cut in, "Is that true?"

Luthor shrugs, "Sort of. I would like Gotham to be home to the first ever – And what I hope will be the first of several- Luthor Hotel and Casino."

Councilman, "Really?!"

Luthor nods, "Yes sir. The hospitality and tourism industry is one of the few industries that Lex Corp hasn't taken the proverbial plunge into and I think Gotham would be a great place to start."

Councilman Edwards, "I have to ask… Why not your hometown of Metropolis?"

Luthor, "I do have a similar project in the works in Metropolis. A country club and resort out on the island. Beautiful, beautiful piece of land; So much acreage and such great scenery. When this place is finished it's gonna take your breath away. And I mean that literally, *your* breath, because undoubtedly if business goes as I suspect it will go here in Gotham, you'll be one of our first members."

The Councilman grins, "Well, I'm certainly flattered…"

Luthor, "But, I can't do a casino in Metropolis. Gambling laws and such."

The councilman groans, "Yes… Well, I'm afraid that could be a bit of an issue here as well. Mayor Matthews isn't very fond of gambling. She thinks it helps foster a criminal element in our city."

Luthor, "Oh, nonsense. Unemployment helps foster a criminal element. Building this Hotel and Casino will produce dozens if not hundreds of jobs. Not to mention the additional jobs when I begin leasing space in the Luthor Hotel and Casino to restaurants and whatever else. Jobs, Councilman Edwards… Jobs are what Gothamites need and jobs are what I can give them."

The Councilman shakes his head and replies, "You don't have to tell me Lex. I think it's a wonderful idea. But you need to be aware that if mayor Matthews can maintain her office through the election it's a very realistic possibility that she'll advance her anti-gambling agenda and surely that'd be detrimental to a brand new Casino business."

Lex Luthor, "Then I guess we'll just have to make sure that doesn't happen won't we?"

The Councilman smirks, "I guess we will… So, if you're already building a resort in Metropolis how would you suggest that Gotham would be your first foray into the tourism industry?"

Luthor sipped his Johnny Walker before saying, "Well… You'd be first in that you wouldn't be second. My aspiration is to open both properties simultaneously in front of a ton of press under the theme of bringing our two cities closer together."

The Councilman laughed slightly, "That sounds like a political move…"

Luthor smirks, "Well, what is a successful businessman but a politician who didn't have to seek election."

The Councilman, "I think this is a great idea. I was a little concerned, to be honest, that you were going to come in and start a manufacturing facility. Which, don't get me wrong, that'd be great for our city –to have new manufacturing jobs available I mean- but, with everything going on at Wayne Enterprises I have no idea if there'd be pushback or not. Wayne Enterprises has a certain amount of influence but nothing I couldn't have dealt with when Bruce Wayne was suspected deceased. However, Bruce Wayne the man has considerably more influence than Wayne Enterprises in and of itself and frankly, if they resisted your competition I'm not sure how much I could have done."

Luthor leaned back, his face void of any tells that might let somebody know what he was thinking. This made our Councilman visibly nervous. After a little thought Luthor finally broke the expanding awkward silence between the two.

Lex Luthor, "I am looking to expand Lex Corp's manufacturing. And at some point in the not so distant future you and I very well could be having a conversation about the most ideal place to set up a plant here in Gotham. But presently my interests in Gotham lie elsewhere. First I want to find a property to host the Luthor Hotel/Casino Resort and get ground broke on that project. Then… Well then I just have some other interests in Gotham but we can discuss that once we've reached the ground breaking stage in this first project. Now if you think your mayor is going to be an issue I can take the project elsewhere but…"

Councilman Edwards, "Oh no, no, no… Let's not do that. I'll tell you what… There are some people I'd really like to introduce you to and it just so happens they're all going to be in the same place tonight. Would you join me this evening at a charitable fundraiser being held at Wayne Manor?"

Lex glances at his watch as he contemplates.

Councilman, "All of our town's movers and shakers will be there, including the presently announced candidates for mayor. The networking opportunities will be invaluable. And there's a lot of folks who I think would be eager to meet the great Lex Luthor."

Luthor laughs a light chuckle but nods in agreement, "I'm sure that's true. Alright, I'll notify my driver. After all, a wise man once said, when given the opportunity to walk into your enemy's home and see how he lives without consequence, it's but only diligent to do so."

Councilman Edwards, "Sun Tzu's 'Art Of War'?"

Luthor lifts his now empty glass and says, "Lex Luthor's 'Art of Empty Glass'."