Chapter 16: The Echoing Countermove and New Rules on the Chessboard
Fisk's first blow had opened a deep wound in Echo's fledgling network of operations. Kael, Aslan, and Roric carefully analyzed the news of the collapsed drug distribution point and the professional and ruthless methods of Fisk's men. Their losses were not only financial; some of his men were missing, presumably into Fisk's hands. This was unacceptable to Kael. Fisk had not only demonstrated his power, but also aimed to undermine Kael's trust in his men and thus himself.
Kael knew that revenge was a dish best served cold, but he also knew that if he did not respond quickly and sharply, Fisk would see him as an easy target. Attacking Fisk's similar operation directly would be an expected and easily countered move. This was not Kael's style. He had to strike at the most unexpected place, at the most sensitive point, like a surgeon's scalpel.
"Fisk wields his power and resources like an army far too large to compare with ours," Kael said in a dimly lit warehouse they had converted into a strategy room at the shipyard. "We must be a guerrilla force too small and agile for his army to detect. We must make him feel that we are a threat under every shadow, that a blow can come from behind every silence."
Roric knew his former master's methods well. "Fisk's greatest strength is his control and his reputation," he added. "If we can shake those two, we can really hurt him. If we can portray his image as 'untouchable,' others will be more courageous against him."
A plan was taking shape in Kael's mind. Rather than attacking Fisk's stronghold directly, he would target his reputation and an unseen vein in his financial network. After several days of intensive intelligence gathering, Aslan found the exact target Kael was looking for: a counting center for one of the city's largest and most secretive casinos, run by Fisk through front companies, where the weekly cash flow was collected and laundered. From the outside, it looked like an ordinary office building, but inside, it was a fortress run by Fisk's most trusted accountants and ruthless bodyguards.
Kael's plan was simple, but its execution required incredible precision and courage. His goal was not to steal money; his goal was to leave a message in Fisk's financial heart.
On the night of the operation, Kael and Aslan infiltrated the building housing the counting center like ghosts. Kael used the Chitauri core to instantly disable or manipulate the building's security systems—cameras, laser sensors, pressure plates. The core acted like his sixth sense, whispering to him every electronic obstacle and every potential threat. Aslan, on the other hand, followed the path Kael had opened, overcoming physical obstacles and disappearing into the shadows.
When they reached the room protected by armored doors where Fisk's main cash vault was located, Kael's marksmanship and the power of the Chitauri core combined. He disabled the complex electronic lock on the door of the room with a precise energy pulse focused from the core. Before the two guards inside could comprehend what was happening, they were silently neutralized by Kael's energy-coated metal balls in the shoulders and legs.
The vault was filled to the brim with dollar bills. But it wasn't the money that caught Kael's attention. On the table was a ledger containing all of Fisk's secret accounts and transfers for the week. Kael took the ledger. Then, he pulled out a small metal business card from his pocket with the symbol of the Echo - a sound wave emitted from the center of a target - and dropped it right in the middle of the vault, on top of the money. Then, with a focused energy from the Chitauri core, he symbolically reduced only a small portion of the money inside the vault to ash. He left the rest untouched.
Their exit from the building was as silent and flawless as their entrance. They left no alarm sounds or evidence behind them; only a pile of money reduced to ashes, a stolen ledger, and a message stuck in Fisk's heart.
The next morning, when Wilson Fisk learned of the incident at the counting center, it was easy to imagine the storm of anger that had erupted behind his usual calm mask. The loss of money was not important; the real blow was the fact that Kael had so easily infiltrated one of his safe havens, that he had so brazenly disregarded his reputation and control. And that ledger… That ledger was a ticking time bomb for Fisk.
Kael had a faint smile on his face as he examined Fisk's ledger in his dockyard headquarters. The ledger showed how vast and complex Fisk's empire was, but it also revealed many of his weaknesses. Kael saw countless ways to use this information to his advantage.
On the Kingpin's chessboard, Kael had made an unexpected move, turning the game in his favor. However, he knew that Fisk's countermove would be much harsher and more ruthless. This was only the beginning of a conflict. And Kael was ready to pay any price in this war. The Chitauri core was pulsating more powerfully than ever in his palm, as if it was whispering that it would accompany him on this long and dangerous path.