Bright Lights and Darker Shadows

Bright Lights and Darker Shadows is Legion of Lawndale Heroes Chapter 11.7. It is the seventh chapter of LLH written by Brother Grimace.

Plot Spoilers
The Fashion Club notices that women are more fascinated with Charles than before, but they don't understand "Upchuck's" appeal.

While Daria sleeps, she inadvertantly enters Langston's dream that has Charles as a WW II naval fighter pilot and Langston as an attractive WAVE. With rather florid language of love and patriotism, Charles asks Langston to marry him in the dream. Unfortunately, Daria finds that she has been cast as a Nazi officer in the dream, and manages to wake up. This is the first use of Daria's power of astral projection (and the side-effect of that power that allows her to enter the Dream Dimension through the dreams of others).

Jane talks to Daria about her invading someone else's dream. Jane is reminded of Daria deleting some of Quinn memories, and Daria flashes back to the conversation she had with Helen (in LLH 4.4, "No Advance Without Strife") that Daria should only use her mind-control powers when she is fully justified. Jane tells Daria to call Kyle Armalin and let him know what Daria has done.

Mack wakes up near a breached reactor at the Sloane Foundation Special Projects Annex Facility. He feels intense pain, but draws upon his experiences as a football player to "drink in" the pain. As he drinks in the odd sensations, the light begans to grow dimmer and dimmer in the room -- and then explodes outward, from him. Armalin arrives to find that all of the radiation in the room has disappeared -- the room is "cold", and most likely, Mack and his new abilities are responsible.

Mack is treated at the Cedars of Lawndale Hospital, and comes up with a clean bill of health. Mack wants to know what happened to him, but his doctor - Hanley Phillips - cautiously tells Mack that he isn't the one to talk to about such things.

Armalin talks with Dr. Phillips about the results of the test. The radiation from the facility should not only have vaporized Mack, but caused a Chernobyl-like nuclear disaster that would have rendered Lawndale uninhabitable. However, Mack is very much alive. Dr. Phillips is conducting more tests on Mack.

At campsite, Quinn sends Daria, Charles and Brittany out to look for remaining flags while the other Legionnaires relocate the base camp. This will give Hank Stewart the chance to take more pictures. Langston Chambers wants to tag along with the three person group including Charles. Daria mutters a sarcastic...and audible...remark under her breath. Jane ends up snapping at Daria to sit down and shut the hell up.

Janet Barch flees Lawndale in a private jet, making sure that Timothy O'Neill has half of her expensive pay to live on. As Janet's body was not found at the radiation breach, Mr. O'Neill is informed by the Lawndale Police Department that Barch is most likely dead. After Mr. DeMartino and Ms. Claire come over to confort him, Detective Hadley tells the two that O'Neill has suffered a serious mental collapse and that he will need to be placed under psychiatric observation.

During the flag search, Langston offers to take some shots with Charles. She takes off her clothes to reveal her pink bikini, and Charles goes bare-chested to take pictures with her. Daria inadvertantly shifts into reading Hank Stewarts thoughts (on his missing out with Langston, on Charles's success, and on Daria's frigid nature) and the rush of thoughts induces violent nausea in Daria.

Armalin misses the call with Daria, but calls Quinn instead. Armalin decides to end the exercise, and tells Quinn that he will have a talk with Daria on the way back.

Janet finally arrives at her destination, an appointment with a businessman who wants to know about the radioactive gold that Barch used with the NetCell project. He tells Barch that he wants to work with her on a special project. His name is Lex Luthor, and Janet Barch comes abord on '33.1 (his special metahuman project, using her "Doctor" title from her Ph. D. and reverting to her maiden name...Regulus.

Trivia

 * Mack and Sandi made out with each other once at the beach. (Jodie has never been told.)
 * Fandemonium is a television program in the LLH Universe, on the Soaper Central channel.
 * The Axe is mentioned for the first time.
 * It is implied that Dr. Phillips and Armalin have a common past.
 * Dr. Phillips has won the infamous Porterhouse Challenge.

Dramatis Personae

 * Hank Stewart, freelance photographer.
 * Langston Chambers, Hank Stewart's guide to Grace Island.
 * Dr. Hanley Phillips, a doctor at the Cedars of Lawndale Hospital.
 * Detective Riker, a member of the Lawndale Police Department bearing bad news.
 * Detective Melinda Handley, another officer.
 * Lex Luthor, working on projects of his own.

Links
"Bright Lights and Darker Shadows" at thepaperpusher.net