Chapter 62: Pieces on the Board (Patreon)

Ethan didn’t even glance at the clock as he stepped back into his family’s hotel suite. School was already half over, and he hadn’t shown up once today. He didn’t care.

There was no time for classrooms, no patience for equations and essays that would never matter in the battles ahead. Not when there were empires to dismantle and kingdoms to build.

The print shop needs to be fully operational within ten days, he reminded himself as he dropped his bag by the door and headed straight for his workstation. Once that’s secured, I can stop thinking about it. I need my focus free for the real threats: Osborn, Delilah, and Rose.

He settled into his chair and powered on his triple-monitor setup, the blue glow washing over his face. A deep breath. Then his fingers began moving, steady and precise.

“Name first,” he murmured to himself, pulling up the state’s business registry.

The cursor blinked accusingly as he scrolled through possible newspaper names he’d been workshopping.

The Lion’s Voice? No—too aggressive. The Manhattan Chronicle? No—too generic. The Daily Prism? Maybe…

He paused, fingers hovering.

Insight.

A faint smile tugged at the corner of his lips. “Insight to gain an accurate and deep intuitive understanding… basically to see through lies and find the truth… it fits.”

He typed it in and submitted the search for availability.

Available.

“Perfect.”

He filed the Articles of Organization under Insight, LLC, listing the print shop’s address as their business location. The registered agent? Peter Parker, naturally. Peter’s adult status gave them a legitimate front, while Ethan stayed invisible behind his masks.

For “managers/members,” he used his fifth identity: Isaac Maddox. Columbia University student. Political science major. Community volunteer. All of it built from carefully layered digital footprints—fake transcripts, donation receipts, even photoshopped photos of Isaac with his back turned handing out meals at a homeless shelter.

Within minutes, Isaac Maddox was officially a co-owner of a New York newspaper.

Ethan paid the filing fee with an untraceable prepaid card he set up. One step down.

Next came the LLC Operating Agreement. It was tedious but vital—outlining ownership percentages, roles, and decision-making processes.

He set himself, as Isaac Maddox, as the silent majority shareholder. Peter would be listed as editor-in-chief and would be given 30% percent of the shares, in charge of all content and editorial decisions. Felicia, should she agree to it, would be given 25% of the shares and would oversee security and logistics.

He drafted clauses about profit sharing and voting rights, embedding safeguards to ensure no outsider could ever wrest control from their small team.

By the time he finished, the document read like something drafted by a seasoned corporate lawyer.

Two steps down.

Ethan pulled up the IRS website and applied for an Employer Identification Number under the LLC. He filled in the forms in seconds, his fingers flying across the keyboard, and within minutes had their EIN.

This number would be the key to hiring employees, managing taxes, and setting up a business bank account.

But that last step wasn’t his to handle.

Peter would have to do the account setup in person, Ethan thought with faint irritation. I don’t have time to play banker or hack through layers of federal systems just to create a checking account. Focus on priorities.

With the legal scaffolding complete, Ethan pivoted to the digital realm.

First, he purchased a domain: insight.net, hosted through a privacy-focused provider that scrubbed all ownership metadata.

He set up a basic website template—clean, modern, and flexible. Placeholder articles filled the homepage, and a “Coming Soon” banner floated prominently across the header.

Next came secure communications. Ethan installed end-to-end encrypted email servers and configured VPN protocols for their team. He would personally oversee all data traffic through onion-routing proxies, ensuring their network was untraceable.

For public-facing social media accounts, Isaac Maddox became the figurehead. The posts were carefully curated: thoughtful commentary on media ethics, quotes about transparency and truth, photos of “Isaac” visiting community events, ready to be uploaded whenever he was ready.

By the time Ethan leaned back, Isaac Maddox looked like a young media mogul in the making.

Ethan rubbed his eyes, the glow of the screens searing into his brain.

The newspaper’s skeleton is done. Now I can stop thinking about it.

But as soon as that thought settled, others surged forward, louder and more insistent.

Norman Osborn. Delilah. Rose.

The “Big Three” looming over his mental chessboard.

Osborn: The Oscorp plan was airtight in theory, but it relied on flawless execution. One mistake and Norman would pivot from defensive to offensive, and Ethan couldn’t let that happen—not with Peter, MJ, and Aunt May in the line of fire.

Delilah: Recruiting her wouldn’t be simple. She wasn’t a villain in the traditional sense, but her loyalty to Rose and her own ambitions made her volatile. Ethan would have to offer her something irresistible—something even Rose couldn’t counter.

Rose: Taking down his criminal network was Peter’s fight, but Ethan had no intention of leaving it fully in Peter’s hands. Rose’s empire was intricate and poisonous. Cutting it out cleanly would require precision—and leverage.

Ethan exhaled slowly, rolling his shoulders.

Three predators on the board. Ten days to neutralize all of them.

If he succeeded, the city would be changed forever.

If he failed…

‘I don’t fail.’

By the time Ethan finally shut his monitors, the afternoon sun was already sliding toward evening. He pushed away from the desk and stretched, his muscles stiff from hours of focus.

The groundwork was laid.

Now came the hard part: execution.

“Ten days,” Ethan murmured under his breath. “Ten days to get all this done.”

He allowed himself the faintest smirk. Then he stood and grabbed his jacket.

There was still work to do.