August 9th, 2010: Metropolis
At the same time, the first creation I was going to need to build was a power source that would be the basis of all my inventions. Now, all of the variants of Lex Luthor always seemed to use Kryptonite as their battery. This has been proven to be a flawed idea so many times. One, there is only a finite supply of kryptonite. Getting only a few ounces would cost thousands if not millions. Two, this alien mineral was radioactive. How Lex Luthor, a man with the potential to have a 12th-level intellect, did not know that a green glowing rock that makes Superman become weak and lethargic could possibly give him cancer is beyond stupid.
No, instead, I was going to recreate the invention of one of my favorite comic book characters, Tony Stark's arc reactor. Not only did it provide clean energy, but it also provided enough energy to power a large city. As Dr. Octavious once said, "The power of the sun in the palm of my hand." Though I was nowhere near an engineer in my past life, I knew I could rely on Lex Luthor's mind to take the wheel on this endeavor.
As soon as I considered the Arc Reactor, Lex Luthor's mind began to engage. He could quickly identify ways to potentially reverse engineer the Arc Reactor. When I thought of Tony Stark's version, my mind instantly began to theorize about how to bring it to life, including the essential steps and materials needed for its recreation.
I realized I could create the same arc reactor Tony Stark had made in Iron Man 1 of the MCU in less than a week! The only reason why I could develop it much faster is that Tony was trapped in a cave with scraps and only had Dr. Ho Yinsen's help. On the other hand, I had state-of-the-art tech, access to a staff of highly intelligent individuals, and billions of dollars to get whatever material was necessary to recreate the arc reactor. Not only that, I wasn't impeded by an injury and wasn't sleep-deprived, dehydrated, and starving like Stark was in captivity in Iron Man 1.
I excitedly excitedly called my lovely assistant, Marcy. " Marcy, please clear your schedule for these next two weeks and schedule a press conference for December 24th! I have a very exciting Christmas gift for the world!"
"Yes, Mr. Luthor, I will do that right away", and she walked off to clear up and reschedule any appointments I had these next 3 months as well as schedule my press conference.
Having figured out how to develop the arc reactor and recognizing that I could have a prototype ready in a week, I chose to delve into a few side projects. In a realm brimming with magic, superpowers, and deities, I required something to even the odds—a suit of power armor alongside a super soldier serum.