[Geneva, Switzerland - The Serpent Group HQ]
Deep beneath a private bank, in a bunker lined with servers, the leaders of the Serpent Group gathered.
At the head of the table sat Number One. He was a man with no face—just a voice modulator and a shadow.
"He bought the media," Number One hissed. "He fired our agents. He humiliated us."
"We cannot kill him physically," a general said, trembling. "He survived an orbital strike. He is a monster."
"Then we kill his wallet," Number One slammed his hand on the table. "He is a Tycoon. His power comes from money. If we freeze his assets, he is nothing."
Number One turned to his team of elite hackers and rogue bankers.
"Initiate Operation: Black Friday. Short his companies. Hack his bank accounts. Crash the Pantheon's stock to zero. I want him begging on the street by lunch."
"Yes, Sir!"
Fifty hackers began typing furiously.
[The Pantheon - 108th Floor]
Alex was playing chess against Luna. He was losing.
"Checkmate in three moves, Master," Luna said, moving her knight.
"Dawn," Alex asked, not looking at the board. "Is it raining in Geneva?"
"Yes, Administrator," Dawn's voice replied. "And the Serpent Group has just launched a massive cyber-financial attack against us."
Alex sipped his tea.
"Details?"
"They are short-selling 50 million shares of Pantheon Corp. They have also bribed three major banks to freeze your liquidity. Their goal is a Flash Crash."
On the giant screen, a red line appeared. Pantheon stock began to dip.
$400... $380... $350...
"They are trying to bankrupt me?" Alex laughed. "That's cute."
Alex stood up and walked to the window.
"Dawn. Don't defend. Attack."
"Protocol: Economic Assassination engaged."
"Buy every share they sell," Alex ordered. "Then, find their liquidity providers. Buy their debt. Call in their loans immediately."
[The Counter-Attack]
In the Geneva bunker, the mood shifted from confidence to panic in seconds.
"Sir! The stock... it's not dropping!" a hacker screamed. "Someone is buying it! The price is going back up!"
"What?!" Number One yelled. "Dump more! Use the reserve funds!"
"We can't!" the banker shouted, his face turning grey. "Our accounts... they are frozen!"
"By who?!"
"By... The Pantheon."
On the main screen, a message appeared. It wasn't a graph. It was a video feed of Alex, sitting in his office, drinking tea.
"Hello, snakes," Alex smiled.
Number One froze. "How did you get this frequency?"
"I bought the satellite you're using," Alex said. "And I just bought your bank."
"Impossible!" Number One screamed. "That bank is worth $50 Billion!"
"I paid cash," Alex shrugged. "Now, as the owner of your debt, I am recalling all loans. You have 60 seconds to pay me $50 Billion, or I seize your assets."
"We... we don't have that kind of liquidity!"
"Then you are bankrupt."
Alex tapped his phone.
[DAWN: Execute Liquidation.]
In the bunker, the lights flickered and died. The servers whirred down. The hackers' screens went black.
"Sir!" a technician cried in the dark. "My personal account... it's empty! My retirement fund is gone!"
"Mine too!"
"He took everything!"
Number One pulled out his gun, but not to fight. He realized he had lost. The Serpent Group, which had terrorized the world for decades, had just been bought and dismantled in under two minutes.
[The Pantheon]
Alex closed the video feed.
[Mission Complete: Economic Warfare.] [Enemy: The Serpent Group (Financial Division).] [Status: Bankrupt / Liquidated.] [Loot: +$12 Billion in seized assets. +150,000 Tycoon Points.]
"Checkmate," Alex said, finally moving his rook on the physical chess board.
Luna looked at the board. Then she looked at the screen where an entire criminal organization had just been deleted.
"Master," Luna whispered. "You are terrifying."
"I'm just a businessman," Alex smiled. "They made a bad investment."