LUTHORCORP
TAKES OVER CAVES

By Angie Perez

In an unexpected shift of administration, the state of Kansas has granted conservatorship of the Kawatche caves to LuthorCorp, citing numerous problems, injuries and unexplained deaths at the Native American archaeological discovery, previously under the guardianship of LexCorp.
The impact, if any, of this changing of the guard on the future of the caves is uncertain. Lex Luthor, whose company has a 5-year contract as conservator, will likely file a counter action against LuthorCorp, although Lionel Luthor clearly must have an ally in the state capital.

Considering he lost the battle to construct a multimillion-dollar business park at this very location, why is Lionel Luthor suddenly interested in cultural preservation? This may be just another display of the titan flexing his extraordinary muscle, a calculated move of one-upmanship between the elder Luthor and his number one adversary--his own son.

A LexCorp spokesperson said CEO Lex Luthor would not issue a statement at this time. It seems there's nothing young Luthor possesses that his father cannot take away

BRYCE/LUTHOR ENGAGEMENT

By Kathy Romita

Smallville residents Dr. Helen Bryce and Lex Luthor have announced their engagement. The couple plan to wed in May of this year.
Metropolis natives, Bryce and Luthor met in Smallville several months ago and instantly fell in love.

The bride and groom have hired Metropolis wedding planner Zoe Flite to organize the big event. Flite stated, "Normally I like to have at least 12 months in order to plan this type of spectacular wedding. It's going to be a challenge to arrange this in only a few weeks. And Lex has insisted that I use only local vendors in order to 'keep the money in the community.' At first I didn't know anyone else here--except for the two of them--but I'm learning fast. And everyone has been extremely helpful and friendly. Helen and Lex's wedding will be fantastic. I promise."

Lana Lang, Talon manager and Luthor's business partner, reported, "I've never seen Lex so happy. He's met his match in Helen. I definitely approve."

Hopefully making the multitude of choices for the ceremony and reception in such a short amount of time won't make the happy couple want to hop a plane and elope.

THE EZRA SMALL CONUNDRUM
Part Four of a Six-Part Series
By Christopher James Beppo

Part I, Part II and Part III of this series may be found in preceding issues of the Ledger.

After the initial flurry of visions described in the late 1838 portions of his diary, Ezra Small seemed to lose interest in keeping his chronicle--or the experiences may have simply stopped for a period of time. The possibility also exists that the badly decomposed document is missing pages that are yet to be found.

Whatever the case, Small picks up his cryptic writing again with renewed vigor in February 1839, expressing his thoughts in the same tautly worded three-line passages as before but cramming even more of them on a page, as if afraid to run out of paper or forget the verses before committing them to writing.

The strings of random letters and symbols are lengthier in this segment as well, and a new element is introduced--and just as quickly abandoned, evidently: giant letters from edge to edge on three successive pages, obliterating some of the smaller lettering. It is impossible to determine what Small had in mind here, as Z, O and D are the only letters he got to. One can only speculate that "zodiac" was the word he was writing, for some reason.

zpbgsblvgllbp qleibq qtppmtla fgk qrfbpkbpfmpl rjmeiba mlb ennpmerfbq wel stpl xmtp zeri jmvbjj rmtlsx glcmpk vgsfmts rmluglrgld jeqretw qs. dbmpdb'q epkmp elapmyelg eumga ctpsfbp rmlsers kgjeaml ngli spegjbp fmkb peglzmv relxml gqsg kgpels qsbjje edfepse zbnnmqew vgjj pbstpl heltq UG zbvepb sfb nbagespgrgel pgsgagel kbspmnmjgq tlgsba rfepgsgbq oegaek rfelajbp'q cgbja vglakgjj ejsekgpe

It's a long excursion
Not a brief conversion
You should remember that
She was only there
In the painter's brushstrokes
Yet she shared in his greatness
The great swarm of bees will arise
Such that one will not know
Whence they have come
Empires rise and fall around her
As beauteous as Prometheus' sister
She blinds those who would possess her
You see him...and you want him
All this time you've been hiding it
Now's your chance to show him
By the shaven head
A very bad choice will come to be made
He will speak with great fury and rage
In a church near a pond
Find a crypt
Before it becomes a tomb
A great cloud from the North
Lightning from burning spheres
Wheel within a wheel
Twisting, spiraling, bending
Nature gives up her secrets
Now it's our sixth day
Do you give the horse his strength
Or clothe his neck with a flowing mane?
He laughs at fear, afraid of nothing
How quickly our differences would vanish
And yet I ask
Is not an alien force already among us?
I'm glad you caught me
I really don't want to be in Dallas
You'll see soon enough
Beyond the pillars of Hercules
Along the Bimini Road
She waits, arms outstretched
As her light flickers
A glow washes over her
Sibling of Lazarus, come forth
In a moment of desperation
A deal will be struck
A town will writhe and suffocate
The Cleric was right
We can't stop now
Where is our Ark?
These late eclipses in the sun and moon
Portend no good to us
Love cools, friendship falls off, brothers divide

LOCAL MAN RECOVERING
FROM BIZARRE STABBING
By Frank Moore

A bittersweet homecoming nearly turned deadly for a former Smallville resident with a tragic past. Six years ago, Peter Dinsmore's daughter, Emily, drowned at age 10 when she accidentally fell into the Elbow River.
Now living in Grandville, Dinsmore recently made a return trip to his old Smallville house to reconnect with memories of his beloved child, according to sources close to him.

There, Dinsmore unexpectedly became the victim of an unmotivated attack when he was stabbed with an old pinwheel lawn ornament. According to Sheriff Nancy Adams, he was unable to identify his attacker.

Discovered by passersby, Dinsmore was rushed into emergency surgery at Smallville Medical Center. His doctors said that the ornament's long spike had pierced his abdomen and came out the other side, but none of his vital
organs were damaged. He is expected to make a full recovery.

This incident marks the latest twist in Dinsmore's eventful life. A distinguished scientist, he first gained notice at Metropolis University for his research into cellular growth. He was soon hired by LuthorCorp, which generously provided him with the funding to take his work to new levels.
Although Dinsmore left the company shortly after his daughter's death, his ex-employer has clearly not forgotten him. Hospital staff reported seeing none other than LuthorCorp CEO Lionel Luthor paying a bedside visit to Dinsmore.

No doubt this act of kindness on the part of the area's most important businessman greatly lifted Dinsmore's spirits. With characteristic modesty, Luthor declined to comment, but a spokesman said, "Mr. Luthor treats his employees like his extended family. When one of them is in trouble, he's never far away."