Hundreds of people were about to die. They had come to attend a parade in support of the war but instead were exposed to the lethal Demon gas. Masses of people collapsed, choking and gasping. Within sixty seconds, they would all be dead.
Fortunately, twin saviors came from the skies. The first was Doc Savage, the legendary Man of Bronze in his fantastic plane, the Skybolt. Savage activated a suction vacuum that he had long ago installed in his plane to clear smoke screens. He flew low, sucking up most of the Demon gas in the area. Behind Savage was the Shadow in his auto-gyro. He also flew low, and the rotors of the auto-gyro dispersed the remaining faint mists of Demon gas. They cleared the area of gas in only thirty seconds. Time enough to ensure that the people below hadn't been exposed to a fatal amount. Most were unconscious. All would need to be hospitalized, but none would die.
As the Thinker drove from the site of the disaster, he listened on the car radio. He heard about the two planes that had saved the day. One was rumored to be the jet of Doc Savage. The other was unknown. But the Thinker knew who was in it. The Shadow! Damn those two! They has cleared out the gas before the Thinker could learn whether or not it was fatal in a wide open outdoor space. Still, the reports were that everyone was unconscious. That should be good enough. Dead or unconscious, the soldiers would still be helpless to stop him from claiming Project: M!
While Doc Savage was returning to the site of the Demon gas attack, the Shadow returned home and resumed his Lamont Cranston identity. Then he made some phone calls. He had a lot of friends who were involved in real estate, either selling or buying. It seemed to him that Coffin Industries must own some other piece of property that he and Savage hadn't found out about yet. The Thinker and his gas were hidden somewhere. And the Thinker was too much of a snob to be rotting away in some flea-infested hovel. He'd be in plush surroundings. He was used to style and wouldn't give it up now. And Lady Coffin could certainly provide him with the sort of residence he so loved. Somewhere, in one of the fancy dwellings that Lady Coffin owned, the Thinker would be relaxing after a hard day's evil.
Cranston convinced his contacts that he was interested in investing in Coffin Industries, but needed a complete list of their holdings first. He asked them for a complete list of every piece of real estate that Cassandra Coffin owned. He was confident that one of them would come through eventually. Nothing to do now but wait. He listened to the radio to hear how Savage was getting on at the scene of the parade disaster. From what Cranston heard, it seemed that Savage had things well in hand.
The doorbell rang, and Margo Lane was shown in. Cranston invited her into his sitting room.
"Would you like something to drink, Margo?"
"No thank you. I'm fine."
"All right then. It's not that I'm not pleased to see you, but this is quite a surprise. What can I do for you?"
Margo looked him directly in the eye. "I know."
Cranston felt a twinge of nervousness and excitement. He had suspected that she knew his secret, but he wasn't sure. "You know what?"
"I know that you're the Shadow!"
So the secret was out. She knew. "I see."
"You're not going to deny it?" She asked.
"You wouldn't believe me if I did."
"No Lamont, I wouldn't."
Cranston hesitated for a moment. He finally said, "It's true. I am the Shadow."
Even though she had figured it out, hearing the confession was still a shock. "Wow!"
"And now that you know?" Cranston asked, "What will you do now?"
"I won't tell anyone, if that's what you're afraid of."
Cranston put on his scariest Shadow voice. "The Shadow fears nothing!"
Margo felt a chill. The sudden change was spooky.
Cranston smiled and reverted back to his normal voice. "So you're saying my secret is safe with you, Margo?"
"Yes, it is. I don't want to hurt you Lamont. You've saved my life more than once."
"It was my pleasure, my dear."
Margo smiled. She wondered how he felt about her. She had been fascinated by the Shadow and she had also been attracted to Lamont's handsome face and charm. Now that she knew they were one-in-the-same, she was strongly drawn to him. But how did he feel?
"Did you just come here to tell me you knew?" Cranston asked.
"And to thank you. I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for you. And also, I wanted to ask you something."
"Please. Ask away," Cranston said.
"I want to be part of it."
"It?"
"The Shadow thing. You're life of adventure."
"Out of the question, Margo. What I do is not a fun romp, and it's not a spectator sport. It's a life-and-death war against the most evil scum you'll ever meet. Gangsters, psycho killers and mad scientists. I walk in the dark places most people wouldn't, and shouldn't, ever see. Stay clear of the shadows, Margo. Stay clear of the Shadow!"
"I can't do that," she said, "I know now. I'm involved. And I admire what you do. You make a difference. You help people. You save lives. You're a hero! And me . . . I've never done anything for anybody. I'm just a spoiled rich brat. I want to do something that will give my life meaning. I want to help people, the way you do. Please, let me in."
Cranston's resolve weakened. Her plea was heartfelt and he was also very attracted to her. Could he refuse her? "I . . . I need to think about this."
"Oh, sure. Sure thing. Take your time," she said. "Take a few days. We'll talk again soon. I'll let myself out. See you . . . Shadow!"
After she left, Cranston flopped down into a chair. This was a big decision. He hadn't expected anything like this. His thoughts were interrupted by the telephone ringing. It was one of Cranston's real estate contacts with the information he needed.
Outside, Margo was just about to pull away, when she decided she needed to take a moment to compose herself before she started driving. She sat for a few minutes, thinking about what had just happened. Would Lamont - The Shadow - let her into his life? She was finally ready to pull away when she saw the cab pull up to the Cranston manor. Lamont Cranston got out and stepped into the cab. When the cab sped off, Margo impulsively followed.
The military convoy drove through Manhattan, on it's way to Fort Hamilton Military Base, in Brooklyn. Streets were closed to traffic to allow for a speedier passing. The Brooklyn Bridge was closed off as well. As the convoy crossed the bridge, the Thinker watched from a distance with field glasses. "Project: M! At last!" He focused on the truck and it's hidden cargo. "The prize. Just waiting to be claimed!"
Activating a radio signal device, mines hidden all across the bridge suddenly exploded, releasing Demon gas. The bridge was covered in a cloud so thick it looked like fog. All the soldiers began to choke. They collapsed. After a minute, they breathed their last. They all died, leaving the truck and it's contents undefended.
"Quickly!" the Thinker said to the henchmen supplied by Lady Coffin. "Get it now!"
The group of thugs, all wearing gas masks, rushed onto the bridge. They stole the truck and drove it to the Brooklyn side of the bridge. They stopped to pick up the Thinker. No one seemed to notice any of this, due to the Thinker's power of illusion. The truck was driven to a dark alley, where it was disguised as a bread delivery truck. It then drove casually across Brooklyn until it reached the Brooklyn Naval Yards. They hid in one of the deckhouses on the pier. The Thinker was very satisfied with himself. He contacted Lady Coffin who was more excited than he had ever heard her.
"Excellent work!" she told him. "You'll get a huge bonus for this."
"I didn't do it only for the money, my dear, but it is a nice plus. Our buyer should be here in an hour."
"I'll be there!"
Doc Savage was on the phone in his Empire State Building offices. "Yes, yes, I see. It's bad, I know. Can you get here anytime soon? I see. All right, I'll handle it until then. Thank you for the information, Captain. I'll keep you updated. Goodbye."
Savage hung up and was startled by the Shadow, who was in his office. "I hate it when you do that, Shadow. Did you hear the news?"
"About the stolen truck on the Brooklyn Bridge? Yes, Doctor. I guess we now know what the Thinker and Lady Coffin planned to do with the airborne variant of the Demon gas. They'd somehow gotten world that the military convoy was coming through New York in advance. They developed Demon just to hijack it. If only we knew what was in it, we'd have a better chance of finding . . . "
"I know what was in the truck," Savage said. "That was Captain America I was just speaking to on the phone. He has a pipeline into the government and high security clearance. He found out what the convoy was carrying."
"And that was?"
"A device called a missile."
"A missile? What does it do?"
"It's like a torpedo, except it travels through the air. It's similar to the Nazi's short range B-2 rockets, only a missile goes much, much further. It can blow up a target miles from where it was launched."
"I see," the Shadow said. "But I doubt that either the Thinker or Lady Coffin is planning to blow anything up. Too crude for them. Still, there could be another motive."
"We're thinking the same thing!" Savage exclaimed. "There are foreign governments who would pay quite a lot for the missile. It could help them win the war. They'd pay Lady Coffin millions for it."
"That makes sense," the Shadow said. "I've had my sources do some checking. Lady Coffin's company is losing money. She made some bad investments and the wartime rationing is hurting her profit margin. A rival company is making hostile moves against Coffin Industries. She needs capital to fight them. She needs it quickly."
"Ah! And right about that time she learned about the missile. Somehow, she and the Thinker got together and planned the heist."
"Most likely, Doctor!"
"Well, whoever their buyer is, they're going to have to transport the missile overseas sometime," Savage reasoned. "That means a boat."
"Not just any boat," the Shadow said. "A boat where no one will ask questions."
Savage nodded. "A boat owned by Coffin Industries. Now if we just knew where it would dock . . . "
"We do!" the Shadow said. "I also have a list of all Coffin Industries real estate holdings. They rent out a private pier in the Brooklyn Naval Yards."
"That's just a short drive from where the truck was stolen!" Savage said.
The Shadow nodded. "And that's where we have to go to stop them. Unless Captain America and the JSA are rushing to the rescue at this moment."
Savage shook his head. "They're in the middle of something big right now. They can't get here until tomorrow."
"That'll be too late," the Shadow said. "It's up to us."
"Right!" Savage said. "Let's go!"
"I have a call to make first," the Shadow said.
Detective Van Ness was about to leave his desk at the precinct when he got a call. His partner, Detective Pierce, noticed the shock on Van Ness' face. After Van Ness hung up . . .
"What was that all about?" Pierce asked.
"You're not going to believe this!" Van Ness said. "But that was the Shadow! He just told me where he's going to be in one hour. He wants us to meet him there!"
Margo had lost Cranston's cab, but from the direction it was heading, she guessed that Cranston was heading to the Empire State Building to meet with Doc Savage. She double parked her car outside the skyscraper. She then spotted the Shadow's cab, also double parked nearby. She pulled her car into a meter space that had opened up and made her way sneakily over to the cab.
Minutes later, the driver, Moe, got a buzz on his ring pager. He went to a nearby phone, where the Shadow ordered him to meet him at the Brooklyn Naval yards. While he was away from the cab, Margo slipped into the back seat.
Savage's pneumatic subterranean car got them to the his secret hanger, called the Hidalgo Trading company. The place was near the water, so Savage had a hidden dock where he kept his specialized speedboat, the Seabolt. Savage and the Shadow streaked quickly across the east river to the Brooklyn Naval yards.
The Coffin Industries ship pulled into the private pier rented by Lady Coffin. A man disembarked. He was a Japanese man called the Crimson Samurai. He wore the traditional outfit of the Samurai, sword and all. He bowed respectfully to Lady Coffin. "Madam."
"Noble Samurai," she said. "I am honored by your presence. Come right this way and I'll show you the missile."
The Thinker accompanied them. They opened the door to the deckhouse. The missile was there. But they also saw something they didn't except to see. All of Lady Coffin's Lackeys were unconscious. Bruised and bleeding.
"I think we have company," the Thinker said. "Savage and the Shadow!"
The two heroes stepped out from behind the missile. "Hi," Doc Savage said.
"Get those bastards!" Lady Coffin yelled. The Thinker activated his Thinking cap, and even the Crimson Samurai rushed into battle. Doc Savage picked up a crowbar that was laying nearby and used it to block the Samurai's sword.
The Thinker used his formidable mental powers against the Shadow. But the Shadow had no intention of being on the losing end of another encounter with the Thinker. The Shadow had been preparing himself mentally. He put up "blocks" in his mind. Basically, he clouded his own mind and made himself unable to see any of the Thinker's illusions. He'd never used his power on himself before, but now was as good a time as any to experiment.
And it worked. The Thinker threw every bit of mental energy he had at the Shadow. He tried to make the Shadow see a hundred duplicates of himself. He tried to make the Shadow overwhelmed with fear. He tried to make the Shadow a mental vegetable. None of it worked. The Shadow kept moving forward. "Your petty tricks are no longer a danger to me. The Shadow overcomes. The Shadow cannot be defeated. And the Shadow always wins!"
The Thinker started to panic. He backpedaled toward the door. He turned to run.
The Shadow drew his gun. "Do not run, coward, or I will shoot you down, like a rabid dog!"
The Thinker stopped, terrified. "This isn't possible! No man can resist my power!"
"I am not just a man. I am more. Much more."
"What . . . What are you?" the Thinker stammered in horror.
"What am I? I am the warrior of justice! I walk in the dark places others fear to go! When others step back, the Shadow steps forward! I am the wrath of heaven born in the fires of Hell! And I am the last living thing that you shall ever see! "
The Shadow was almost upon him. The Thinker screamed in horror. "Noooo! Stay away!!"
The Thinker pushed the capacity of his Thinking Cap beyond it's tested limits. He focused it's entire output in a massive surge of brain energy against the Shadow. The Shadow felt the powerful attack coming. He concentrated, using his power to protect his own mind. The assault was devastating and for a moment the Shadow thought he would lose.
But he didn't lose, and the mental assault stopped as quickly as it started. The Shadow was dazed for a moment, but when he recovered, he saw that the Thinker was laying on the ground. His eyes were wide, and drool was coming from his mouth. He muttered weakly, "He can't . . . can't . . . impossible . . . why . . . creature from Hell . . . horrible . . . No more . . . please make him go away . . . someone make him go away!"
Lady Coffin was watching this and decided that maybe it was time to make her exit. Meanwhile, Savage was still blocking the Samurai's sword with the tire iron. Savage finally found the opening he'd been waiting for. He threw a powerful uppercut that caught the Samurai on the jaw. Such was the power of Doc Savage that the Samurai was knocked unconscious by a single blow from Savage's large fist.
"Well done," the Shadow said.
Savage grinned. "Thanks." He looked down at the Thinker. "Looks like he had some kind of overload from his Thinking Cap. He's catatonic, perhaps insane."
The Shadow looked around. "Lady Coffin is gone! She must not escape!"
Outside, Lady Coffin was shouting to the crew of the ship to come down and deal with The Shadow and Doc Savage. As the crew began to disembark, Lady Coffin made her way to her limo.
Moe, the Shadow's driver, had pulled up. He stepped out of the cab. Margo popped out of the back seat.
"Huh?! What the heck are you doing here, Miss Lane?" he asked.
Margo ignored him. She had heard enough of what Lady Coffin shouted to know that she was one of the baddies! She cut off Lady Coffin's escape. "Hold it right there, lady!" Margo said. "Around here we don't like people who order the deaths of other people!"
"Get out of my way, you pathetic little nothing!"
"You shouldn't have said that!" Margo said. Margo punched Lady Coffin, flattening her. Margo rubbed her sore knuckles. "Oww!"
Lady Coffin's limo driver got out and went after Margo. But Moe the Cabby clobbered him before he reached her.
Margo smiled at him. "Thanks."
Nearby, the Shadow and Doc Savage had come out of the deckhouse. They saw Margo taking out Lady Coffin. Savage looked at the Shadow. "A friend of yours?"
"I did not know she had it in her," the Shadow said.
By now, the crew of the ship had reached the dock and were bearing down on Doc Savage and the Shadow. Just then, however, the sirens of the police were heard. Detective's Pierce and Van Ness had arrived, with a small army of uniformed cops behind them. The ship's crew hesitated, surprised. Doc Savage looked around and saw that the Shadow had disappeared from sight. Savage grinned. I might have known.
Savage approached the cops. "These people are smugglers. They're about to take the stolen missile out of the country. The missile is over there! Lady Coffin stole it to sell to that Japanese man."
The police pointed their guns at the crewmen. The crew was not heavily armed, and weren't getting paid enough to enter into a shootout with the police. It would be better for them to just play dumb and pretend that they didn't know what they were shipping. They all put their hands up and surrendered.
"Where is the Shadow?" Pierce asked.
"The Shadow?" Savage asked. "There's no Shadow here."
Van Ness looked at Margo. "What are you doing here Miss Lane?"
"I was just passing by, and when I saw this great hero, Dr. Savage, in danger, I just had to be a good citizen and help."
Pierce and Van Ness were not fooled, but they couldn't prove anything. Besides, they had just made the bust of their careers, and would be heroes. Even if they didn't get the Shadow today, it was still a successful day.
Later that evening, all the criminals had been taken away. The military had arrived and reclaimed their missile. The Mayor and the Commissioner had arrived to give Pierce and Van Ness a pat on the back. Margo went home. The Thinker was carted off to a mental institution. Everybody finally cleared out, except Moe who was parked a block away waiting for the Shadow. Doc Savage was the last one to go. After everyone had left, he headed back to his boat. To his surprise, the Shadow was still there.
"I thought you'd be long gone by now," Savage said.
"I stayed to make sure that everything went smoothly," the Shadow answered.
"I could have handled it."
"I know."
"Thank you for your help, Shadow. I couldn't have done it without you."
"No exchange of thanks is necessary. Justice was served. Innocents lives were saved. That is all that matters to the Shadow. And now, I must go. Goodbye, Doctor Savage."
"Just a minute!" Savage demanded in a less friendly voice, "There's still the matter of you being a wanted vigilante!"
"Do you intend to try and arrest me, Doctor?"
"I should!"
"Before you get back up on your moral high horse, you should take a look in the mirror."
"What do you mean by that?" Savage asked.
"Your crime college," the Shadow said.
Savage looked ashamed. "You know about that, do you?"
"The Shadow knows many things. I know you did illegal brain surgery on convicts."
"The crime college was a mistake!" Savage said, contrite. "I thought if I could neutralize the part of the brain that regulates criminal and hostile behavior, I could turn those men into productive citizens. I see now that I was wrong, and I'll have to live with the consequences. But my intentions were good."
"But your methods were questionable," the Shadow said. "Some might say inhumane!"
"Yes. That's true," Savage said sadly.
"I trust I've made my point," the Shadow said.
Savage nodded. "You're saying that we've both used questionable methods but that our goals are the same. And that I'd be a hypocrite if I had you arrested."
"That about covers it, yes," the Shadow said.
Savage stepped up to the Shadow. "Well, I guess we go our separate ways from here. I still feel that there's great good in you, Shadow, and I think that once you conquer your dark side, you'll be a champion of justice that the world can be proud of. But if it makes any difference, you've won my respect."
"And you, mine," the Shadow responded.
"I can't exactly say it's been a pleasure, but it's been interesting. I imagine we'll run into each other again," Savage said.
"It's a small city," the Shadow said, "and we're fighting the same war."
Doc Savage extended his hand. "Goodbye, Shadow."
The Shadow took his hand and shook it. "Goodbye, Doctor Savage."
The Shadow vanished into the darkness. Doc Savage got into his boat and sped away down the river. Somewhere, the Shadow watched him go. "We will meet again. The Shadow knows!"
Next: The Shadow meets Dracula in The Shadow Annual #1. Then, in issue #11, he teams up with Weapon X!