The wind atop the Queensboro Bridge carried a chill that seemed to scrape at the very bones.
Luke Cage and Danny Rand stared at the red figure before them, momentarily speechless.
"You're going through the front door?"
Danny's voice was almost lost to the wind.
"Matt, listen to what you're saying! That's a trap within a trap! Kingpin is practically begging you to go in there!"
"I know."
Matt Murdock's reply was terrifyingly calm.
"You know and you still..."
"Because that's the center of the stage."
Matt cut him off.
Daredevil didn't turn, still gazing out over the city.
"Kingpin has prepared a grand performance."
"He's invited all the audience. If I, the protagonist, were to sneak in through the back, wouldn't that be a huge disrespect to him?"
These words sounded utterly absurd, but Luke Cage detected a different meaning.
"He's counting on you to be angry, to lose your reason."
Luke said in a deep voice, "He wants to see you charge in like a Beast, and then be torn apart by his traps."
"Yes." Matt nodded, "So I will play the Beast well. I want him to believe that his script is unfolding perfectly."
"I want him to focus all the lights, all the cameras, all the attention on me."
"Also, after this, Kingpin might settle scores with William." He slowly turned around, Daredevil's mask facing the two.
"Only if the protagonist is captivating enough on stage will the actions backstage go unnoticed."
Danny and Luke understood instantly.
This wasn't suicide.
This was a tactic using life as bait.
To create the only window for a real assault, using the most insane and impossible method.
"Luke."
Matt turned to the tall figure.
"Point A, the main ventilation shaft. The blueprints say it connects to the upper levels of the entire facility, and it's also one of the heavy weapon transport channels."
"Your mission is to turn that place into a pile of scrap metal. The more commotion, the better. Make them scramble to plug that hole you've created."
Luke Cage's fists crackled as he clenched them.
He nodded heavily.
"Danny."
Matt then turned to Iron Fist.
"Point B, the backup generator sets. That's the energy heart of the entire Base."
"It's the most heavily guarded area, with the most technical personnel. You need to make them believe you can plunge all of Long Island into darkness at any moment."
"They will stop you at all costs."
Danny Rand's breathing became ragged: "We're going to draw Fire, but what about you?"
"You're alone at the front door, facing all of their most concentrated forces!"
"That's not acting, that's really going to die!"
"In my script, I was always meant to die there."
Matt's voice showed no emotional fluctuation.
"Kingpin won't suspect a man walking towards his own grave."
"This is the only time I can buy for you."
"This plan is too crazy!"
Danny roared.
"Then go crazy with me once."
Matt's voice cut through the wind.
"Trust me, and trust yourselves. Kingpin's script, it's time for a different ending tonight."
After speaking, he gave the two no chance to object, leaning back and falling backward, like a red leaf, plummeting into the darkness beneath the bridge.
Danny and Luke rushed to the edge, only to see his figure rise and fall a few times before completely merging into the city's Shadow.
The two exchanged glances, both seeing determination in the other's reaction.
"Go!"
Luke growled, "Let's tear his home apart!"
...Fisk Industries Research Center, Sub-level Three, Main Control Room.
Wilson Fisk sat quietly in a wide armchair, dozens of high-definition screens pieced together before him, displaying every corner of the Base.
The air was filled with the aroma of coffee and the distinctive smell of electronic equipment in operation.
A technician in a White lab coat hurried to his side, bowing respectfully to report:
"Sir, the 'black sky' project activation progress has reached 75%. It is expected that the final neural link and command implantation will be completed within forty minutes."
Fisk picked up his coffee cup, took a small sip, a satisfied smile on his face.
He liked the feeling of everything being under control.
Just then, a piercing alarm suddenly blared throughout the Main Control Room.
"Alarm! Sector A main ventilation shaft under violent intrusion!"
"Alarm! Intruder detected in Sector B backup energy center!"
The screens instantly switched, two chaotic images dominating the main display.
A tall, muscular Black man was tearing alloy ventilation ducts into twists with his bare hands.
Any security personnel attempting to approach him would be thrown aside like trash.
In the other image.
A guy in a green training suit had a golden glow on his fists; each punch left a burning imprint on the heavy protective doors.
"It's Luke Cage and Iron Fist."
Beside Fisk, a leader of The Hand said in a deep voice, "Do we need to dispatch elite squads to deal with them?"
Fisk chuckled disdainfully, waving his hand to signal the technician to connect the audio to the loudspeaker.
"No need." His voice carried a hint of cat-and-mouse playfulness, "They're just two appetizers, trying to buy some time for the main course."
He watched the two figures wreaking havoc on the screen with interest.
"Let them make a fuss, the bigger the better. I want to see how much they can heat up my plate."
He shifted his gaze from those two screens, returning it to the progress bar.
75%.
Soon.
William Rodriguez... you have a part in this, don't you?
Madame Hydra... Heh... He put down his coffee cup and instructed The Hand leader beside him: "Switch all surveillance footage to the front door. Notify everyone, prepare to welcome our true guest."
"The show is beginning."
...Outside the main entrance of the Research Center was a wide plaza.
Dozens of high-power searchlights illuminated simultaneously, making the area as bright as day, leaving no shadow a place to hide.
At the focus of the light beams.
A red figure stood alone.
Daredevil.
Opposite him were three rows of armed personnel fanned out.
They wore pitch-Black tactical vests.
Holding automatic rifles, the muzzles gleamed with red laser sights, densely converging on the red figure.
Behind them, a team of ninjas, wielding katanas and moving with eerie grace, lurked like venomous snakes in the darkness.
The air solidified.
The murderous atmosphere was enough to make even the bravest warrior's heart stop.
At the same time, at two other locations in the Base, battle had already erupted.
Inside the ventilation ducts of Sector A, Luke Cage had just rammed open a Fire door with his shoulder when a piercing high-frequency sound wave suddenly struck!
He felt his brain being pierced by ten thousand needles simultaneously, and his invulnerable body felt a deep, internal pain for the first time.
Immediately after, several bullets with red contrails accurately shot towards his eyes and Sun temples!
On the other side, Sector B's energy center.
Danny Rand's Iron Fist had just repelled three ninjas, when five more Shadows dropped from the ceiling.
Chain blades and kusarigama in hand, they attacked his limbs and throat simultaneously from five incredibly tricky angles.
Their coordination was seamless, as if they could predict the trajectory of his every punch, trapping him firmly in place.
The feint, within the first minute of its start, had fallen into an absolute predicament.
Outside the main entrance, Daredevil seemed to sense his companions' plight; he clenched his fists.
Just as he was about to charge.
After a faint electrical hum, Kingpin's steady voice, transmitted through the plaza's broadcast system, clearly reached everyone's ears.
"Daredevil, welcome home."
Fisk's voice paused, building suspense.
"Elektra... is waiting for you."
"But to see her, you'll have to pay some interest first."
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