New York – Midtown – Ashburn Holdings HQ
9:41 AM – Local Time
Victor Ashburn entered the glass-paneled boardroom without announcement. The CEOs of three multibillion-dollar firms stood mid-argument over market share in the tech-defense sector. They didn't see him.
They couldn't.
> [Passive Ability: Presence Suppression – Active]
> "No one sees what they fear to understand."
Krieg, clad in a pinstriped suit, stepped into visibility beside Victor and laid down a plain black folder on the table.
It pulsed faintly — bound by shadow-magic and coded cyber-wards.
The lead executive blinked. "Who—?"
"You've been purchased," Krieg said evenly. "Ashburn Holdings now holds controlling shares in ViroTech, GolemWorks, and OmniCrate."
"That's impossible—"
Victor raised a single hand.
The shadows behind each executive twisted. Suddenly, they stood in a memory of their darkest failure: scandals they'd buried, deals they'd sabotaged, lives they'd destroyed.
Then the vision vanished.
Victor spoke for the first time.
"I don't deal in the impossible," he said. "Only the inevitable."
They signed without another word.
---
[Corporate Report – Ashburn Holdings / Shell Assets: Shadow Entities]
> Stark Industries – 8.3%
Oscorp – 3.1% (via Cayman subsidiary)
Rand Enterprises – 1.9% (pending hostile bid)
Roxxon – Internal compromise initiated
Global Influence Rating: Growing
---
Kamar-Taj – Nepal – Same Day
In the cool silence of the inner sanctum, Master Wong frowned at an ancient relic. It was weeping black mist — slowly, subtly.
"Is it broken?" asked a young acolyte.
"No," Wong said slowly. "It's reacting… to something old. Something buried."
He turned to the ancient tomes again.
"It seems… the shadows have begun to organize."
---
Paris – Underneath the Louvre – Midnight
Victor walked down an invisible stairwell that mortals had not touched in six centuries.
At the bottom lay the Crypt of Y'Serrak — a forgotten nexus of primal magic sealed by the Council of Nine during the Dark Ages. It had once belonged to necromancers who'd tried to raise gods.
Victor cracked the seal with a whisper.
The chamber groaned open.
> [Magical Artifact Detected]
Object: The Oath Mirror
Effect: Binds allegiance via reflection of true self
Status: Dormant
Behind him, five figures emerged — his top lieutenants among the Shadow Soldiers.
"I called you from death," Victor said. "Now I give you identity."
Each one stepped forward and looked into the mirror.
Where once they were monsters, now they became officers.
General of Shadows. Wraith Archivist. Silent Tongue. Broker of Bones. Bladeborn.
Victor extended his hand. "Swear to the Shadow Court."
They knelt.
The chamber remembered magic. The Oath Mirror flared.
Victor Ashburn's rule was no longer quiet.
It was organized.
---
New York Sanctum – One Week Later
Doctor Stephen Strange stood before the floating Eye of Agamotto, its soft golden light swirling with subtle tension.
"The barrier is holding," he said to Wong, "but something is growing beneath the weave."
Wong nodded grimly. "Not celestial. Not infernal. Something mortal-made. Shadow-born."
Strange narrowed his eyes.
"Then we need to find it—before it finds us."
---
Elsewhere – Madripoor – Crimson District
Victor entered the blood-soaked underworld of Madripoor in silence. It was a haven for arms dealers, sorcerers-for-hire, assassins, and mutants hiding in plain sight.
Tonight, he sought one thing:
The Ledger of Mouths — an ancient magical auction book that tracked every deal of consequence across the mystical criminal world.
It sat in a steel vault behind five wards and three mana-eating demons.
Victor blinked once.
> [Summon: Shadow Hound – Cerber-class]
> Materialized
Command: Tear.
In ten seconds, all defenses were gone.
He opened the book.
> [Active Contracts Logged:]
– Wilson Fisk & Harkonnon (Demonic Pact, 3 years)
– Mephisto / Midtown Broker
– Dr. Doom / Latverian Archive Theft
– Unknown Entity: "The Quiet One" – Shadow-based trades / Volume 12 entries
Victor frowned.
He had not logged any trades under that alias.
Someone else was using shadow magic.
Another player was pretending to be him.
---
Oscorp Tower – Private Lab Access – Hack In Progress
Krieg stood before a trembling Norman Osborn.
"You're too early," Krieg said. "Green Goblin isn't due yet."
"I don't know what you mean," Osborn said, sweating.
Krieg opened a small obsidian box. A wave of compliance magic washed out.
"Your company's future belongs to Ashburn now. If you deviate, we destroy you."
"...What do you want?"
"Research," Krieg said. "Your cross-species genetic programs. All of them."
Osborn nodded slowly. He didn't understand.
But he would.
---
Victor's Private Study – Midnight Meditation
Victor stood in the middle of a rune circle etched in glowing black ink.
He was listening.
Not with ears, but with his soul.
The Leylines were speaking.
> "The Moon weeps blood soon."
"The spider slips. The panther roars. The shield cracks."
"You are not alone in the dark."
Victor opened his eyes.
"I know," he whispered.
> [New Threat Registered: Entity Mimicking Shadow Signature]
Codename: Mirrorbound
Location: Unknown
Motivation: Chaos / Imitation
Resolution: Pending
Victor's empire was growing.
But so were his enemies.
And one of them was wearing his mask.
---
Final Scene – London – Inner Circle of the Hellfire Club
A fire crackled in the hearth. Emma Frost poured herself a drink and stared at a single document glowing on her desk.
It was a buyout offer for one of their secret R&D labs. Disguised as a charitable merger.
Signed in elegant script:
V. Ashburn
Emma raised an eyebrow.
"Well," she murmured. "Someone clever finally came to play."
---