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The thin man took out his cell phone, glanced at the message, and muttered to Eagle, "It's from Madam Gao."
As soon as he spoke, Eagle hurried over, his face tightening with panic. "She's warning us!"
"Madam Gao gave us three days to deliver the goods," the thin man said, looking up. "We've already burned through one. Now we only have two left."
Eagle fell silent. After a few seconds, he suddenly raised his head with a firm expression. "Bal, there's only one option now. We get another energy source."
"Another piece?!" the thin man, Bal, exclaimed, eyes wide. "That thing was stolen from Stark Industries by one of Madam Gao's own people! That guy spent years infiltrating the place before he finally found the right opportunity. And now you think we can just ask him to steal another one?"
He paused, thinking for a moment, then shook his head. "No chance. He won't help us. He's loyal to Madam Gao. We're nobodies to him."
"Who said anything about asking him?" Eagle said, staring hard at him. "We'll do it ourselves. We'll take it."
Bal stared in disbelief. "You've lost your mind. Rob it ourselves? We can't even get through the front doors of Stark Industries!"
"I'm not talking about Stark Industries," Eagle said, shaking his head. "Bal, do you remember what that guy told us when the boss took us to pick up the goods?"
Bal frowned. "No. What are you getting at?"
Eagle leaned in. "He said Tony Stark had part of the energy source moved to the vault of Stark's private bank. Only a portion was left at the lab."
Bal raised a brow. "So?"
"So we can't break into the lab, but the bank is another story," Eagle said, voice lowering. "The security at the bank isn't as strict."
"No way," Bal said immediately. "Even if it's not as tight as the lab, it's still Stark's bank. The place is a fortress."
Eagle leaned forward, eyes intense. "You'll die whether you try or not. But if we go for it, there's at least a chance. Stay put, and Madam Gao will have our heads."
That silenced Bal.
He stood there, torn, weighing risk and survival.
If they went for the heist, they might succeed—barely.
But if they did nothing, failure was guaranteed. And with it, death. Madam Gao didn't tolerate mistakes, especially when it came to valuable tech.
"Okay..." Bal finally muttered. "We'll try."
In the shadows above them, unseen, John crouched silently on a rusted steel beam, listening to everything.
He had been planning to strike while they were distracted—cut them down one by one.
But now… now he was curious.
This wasn't just some small-time crew.
This was a chain in a much larger machine.
Madam Gao. Stark's energy tech. Robbing a bank?
That changed everything.
John settled deeper into the shadows, his thoughts racing.
Queen Street, New York.
A name that meant something different in the criminal underworld.
Here, the skyscrapers and wealth masked the rot below. Since the early 1900s, Queens had always been the underbelly of the city. Slums turned to ghettos, then became battlegrounds for gangs, crime families, and underground syndicates.
No matter how modern the skyline, the darkness never left.
And at the top of that shadow empire stood Kingpin.
Wilson Fisk.
Known by everyone who mattered—gangsters, smugglers, dealers, even vigilantes like Spider-Man and the X-Men.
It wasn't because of any flashy powers.
In fact, if it came down to raw strength, Spider-Man could crush him with ease.
But that was never the point.
Kingpin didn't need superpowers. He used laws, bribes, threats, and influence. He owned judges, controlled mayors, and financed criminal networks from behind luxury offices and fine suits.
Even people with real power had to give Kingpin face.
And when things reached a boiling point, even Kingpin had to bow to someone.
Madam Gao.
One of the Five Fingers of The Hand.
An ancient, ruthless organization that had embedded itself into every layer of the world's darkness.
And unfortunately, John had offended her within days of stepping into this world.
The kill order had already gone out.
He didn't particularly care.
He wasn't foolish enough to think he could live cleanly here. Offending people—dangerous people—was inevitable.
But that didn't mean he wouldn't use the situation to his advantage.
"Eagle, let's go talk to the others about robbing Stark's bank," Bal said, his voice cutting into John's thoughts.
A heist?
Stark's private vault?
John's lips curled into a slow, dangerous smile.
Now that… was interesting.
As the two men walked off, he melted deeper into the shadows.
A new plan was already forming.
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