Marvel and Beyond

Just as Max was mulling over his next move, his phone buzzed, pulling him out of his thoughts.

Ring!

He checked the number and picked up.

"Hello! Morning, Uncle," he greeted with a smile.

"Good morning, Max. I trust you received everything I sent?" Victor asked, getting straight to the point—as usual.

"Yes, but there's more than I expected. What's all this about?" Max replied, the confusion evident in his tone.

Victor let out a long sigh on the other end. Max's brows furrowed instantly. That sound never meant anything good.

"There's been movement at K-Tech," Victor admitted. "They're acting faster than we anticipated."

Max's frown deepened. "What happened now?"

"They cleared out your father's office," Victor said quietly, disappointment lacing his words. "The items I sent were recovered from there."

The line went still. Even the hum of the surrounding outside seemed to fade into silence.

Victor waited, but all he heard was Max's uneven breathing.

Max's eyes burned red, a mix of rage and grief tightening in his chest. He had walked through a life in different world, had relationships and seen them end. 

Pain was nothing new to him.

But this was a different kind of pain. Something in his blood screamed, boiled in heat.

'How dare they even touch Dad's office, cleaning it out like they already own the damn company!'

A surge of fury erupted in his veins.

"How could they touch that office?" he barked, voice sharp and trembling with indignation. His grip tightened around the phone as his face flushed and his heart pounded like war drums in his chest.

This wasn't just a corporate maneuver—it was an insult. A violation of legacy. A blatant act of disrespect.

"They want to wrap things up quickly," Victor replied, resigned. "And they clearly don't care how you feel about it. With you off the board, they're going after your shares next month. You knew this would come."

A pause hung between them before Victor added, "They're planning to strip you of every last bit of influence. Even the people who worked under your father are starting to distance themselves. They're choosing their jobs over loyalty. To them… you're already a sinking ship."

Max gritted his teeth, knuckles turning white as the rage boiled over.

"Those bastards," he hissed under his breath.

He never cared deeply for the company itself. It had never been his dream. But it was his father's life's work. And seeing it picked apart like scavengers at a carcass—it cut deeper than expected.

He'd already been planning to walk away from the mess. But now, that quiet retreat hardened into something else. A promise.

'They'll pay. Not now, but they will.'

'If it's money they want, then I'll bleed them dry. Leave them with nothing. Or maybe…'

He pulled himself out of the spiral and returned to the call.

"What do you suggest we do, Uncle?" he asked calmly. But beneath the smooth voice, the fury still simmered.

"That depends on what you want," Victor answered pragmatically. "A legal battle won't get us far, and the timeline they've set gives us little room to maneuver. Next month, they'll start bringing in outside capital to dilute your shares."

Max let out a long sigh—not of disappointment, but of resignation. He had no intention of entering a courtroom. He knew how the game was played—the rich had their own rules, and the law rarely favored principle over power.

K-Tech's value was bloated. Its market reach was small, its future even smaller. The only reason it hadn't collapsed already was because of Tony Stark's name—something that had long stopped meaning anything to the company.

Once the world noticed Tony's silence, or worse, forgot about company entirely with his new scandals, the illusion of stability would shatter.

Suddenly, a new thought crossed Max's mind.

"Uncle, about the office building... Sky Tower's lease to K-Tech is ridiculously low. Aren't the execs worried I might kick them out or jack up the rent?"

His father had owned fifteen of the upper floors in Sky Tower. He'd used several of them personally, but had leased out space to K-Tech for almost nothing—for the good of the company.

It was leverage. Not genius-level, but enough if wielded boldly.

Victor paused. "The contract expires this month," he said. "That's why they're making moves now—they've probably already decided to relocate."

"They're prepared for everything, Max," he added bitterly.

Max leaned back in his chair and stared at the ceiling. He closed his eyes for a moment, letting it all settle. Then, he opened them again, brushing aside the K-Tech disaster.

"Let's table that for now. Uncle, what's going on with Cell Labs?"

Victor caught on to the shift. "Your father believed keeping the veteran scientists together might be useful someday," he said. "But he never finalized the deal."

Max nodded slowly. Then, after a beat, "How much are they asking for the lab?"

There was a pause on Victor's end, as if he were caught off guard. "You want to buy it?" he asked, unsure of where Max's thoughts were heading.

A research lab was expensive. Without a clear plan, it could turn into a money pit.

But Max's eyes flicked to the glowing system icon lingering in the corner of his vision. Images of the T-virus crossed his mind. Ideas churned rapidly within him.

"I think it might be useful," he said simply, a slight grin tugging at his lips.

Victor let out a breath. "With equipment, operational costs, and salaries, you're looking at around 10 million for everything."

Max nodded. That was surprisingly affordable. Possibly due to the lab's small scale and lack of corporate backing.

Fortunately, he had more than enough sitting in the bank.

He'd scale it up later.

"What about our old investment firm? Knight Investment?" he asked, eyes narrowing in thought.

"It's still operational," Victor confirmed, though his tone carried a heavy note. "But after the last losses, Arthur had to cut back. A small team handles a modest fund now—enough to keep it afloat without bothering your father."

The dot-com crash had hit everyone. Arthur was one of the few who'd kept his head.

"Are they still based in Sky Tower?"

"Yes. One of the corner offices your father reserved for private use. Knight Investment is on a lower floor—K-Tech occupies the ones above."

Max nodded again, his mind spinning with fresh plans.

"Good. I'll send over the necessary files for the legal stuff. Be ready—I'm moving forward on several things. Starting now."

Victor paused, hearing something new in Max's voice. A steely certainty. A quiet storm building beneath calm words. It reminded him of Arthur in his younger years—facing the world without hesitation, no matter how cruel it turned.

Victor smiled faintly.

"Send them all," he replied, chuckling quietly.

The call ended.

And somewhere in the quiet, the first move of a long game had been made.

….

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