His first impression was simple: cameras. Everywhere. Security lenses nested in corners, biometric scanners mounted near every elevator, and discreet motion sensors blended into the walls. Surveillance was constant, a quiet hum woven into the building's bones.
It made sense. LexCorp was a titan across multiple industries—energy, medicine, defense, aerospace—and ensuring airtight security was the only way to protect secrets that could shift the balance of global power.
Lena guided him through the building with the ease of someone who'd walked these halls for years. She was full of optimism about LexCorp's mission to "make the world better through science." It wasn't hard to see why she was furious at Lex—her own brother—for twisting that mission into personal gain and collateral damage.
Yet Joseph could tell that beneath her bitterness, she still believed LexCorp could be a force for good.
They visited the energy division first, where engineers in white coats walked him through prototypes of sustainable fusion reactors and next-generation power grid technology. One system in particular could stabilize blackouts in developing nations, promising light to cities that had never known reliable electricity.
Then they descended into the medical wing. The sterile, glass-walled labs brimmed with breakthroughs: regenerative biotech projects, advanced prosthetics, nanomedical research, cancer treatments in clinical testing. A scientist proudly showed him a nanite prototype meant to deliver targeted therapies.
Lena's voice brightened with awe. "LexCorp's nanite research could change everything. Imagine a world where disease is obsolete."
In the R&D labs, he saw robotics, AI assistants, cybernetic limbs that moved with frightening precision, and sleek defense drones that hovered silently in test chambers. Everything gleamed under bright white lights, draped in the language of humanitarian benefit.
But Joseph wasn't fooled.
The prosthetics could be retooled into cybernetic soldiers.
The drones weren't designed to deliver medicine—they were weapons first.
The nanite programs here were a diluted echo of what initially pulsed in his own bloodstream.
Even Lena seemed to feel the dissonance. Her cheer thinned as the tour went on, her words faltering.
Joseph didn't press. He only asked occasional questions, enough to appear engaged without betraying judgment.
By the time they stopped, she smoothed her blazer and cleared her throat. "That concludes the tour. The last thing on the schedule is a meeting with the board of directors. Unlike with your BellCorp, where you're the sole proprietor, LexCorp is a publicly traded multinational corporation. That gives it the scale to operate globally, but it also means the company isn't entirely yours. It belongs to the shareholders, and the board represents them.
"Lex controlled the majority of shares, which allowed him to make sweeping decisions, but the board still holds sway. They'll want to meet you—not just as Lex's son, but as the one he put forward to inherit his position. Some will be welcoming. Others… less so."
Joseph only nodded. "Thanks. I think I got this."
They entered the elevator, rode silently, and then stepped into a glass-walled corridor lined with LexCorp insignias. At the far end, heavy double doors opened into the boardroom.
Joseph wasn't intimidated. He'd fought threats capable of leveling planets. A few manipulative executives weren't going to rattle him.
The boardroom was cavernous, the long polished table stretching nearly wall to wall. Screens lined the far wall, displaying LexCorp's falling stock prices and the headline ticker from financial networks.
The directors were already seated—men and women in tailored suits, every one of them older, sharper, seasoned in corporate battlefields.
Lena guided him forward. "Ladies and gentlemen, this is Joseph Bell… Luthor."
Murmurs rippled. Some eyes gleamed with curiosity. Others narrowed with open skepticism.
"Mr. Bell," one gray-haired director began, voice clipped. "Or should we call you Mr. Luthor? You'll forgive us if we're… skeptical. You're very young. You've never managed a corporation of this scale. LexCorp is under intense scrutiny. Why should we believe you're capable of leading us?"
Damn. Right off the bat?
Joseph smiled faintly. "You don't have to believe it. You'll see it."
The man bristled but Joseph kept talking, calm and measured. "I built BellCorp from scratch. I managed contracts, secured partnerships, and built a consumer brand trusted worldwide in just a year. Not because I had Lex's money or influence, but because I had ideas and execution. I understand the scale is vastly different from the role I will be assuming but it should show I have some experience."
Murmurs rose around the table.
Another director, a woman with steel-rimmed glasses, leaned forward. "This isn't entertainment, Mr. Bell. This is energy, defense, medicine—sectors where a single misstep can trigger lawsuits, sanctions, even wars. Do you have any idea what level of responsibility you're stepping into?"
"Nobody is born ready for leadership, but I assure you I'm a fast learner. And isn't it your role as the board of directors to help me in that regard? Regardless, responsibility doesn't scare me. What scares me is letting LexCorp continue to be a parasite under the guise of progress. That ends today," Joseph said.
Lena looked surprised by his eloquence, then gave an approving nod.
One of the older men scoffed. "Strong words. But words don't keep shareholders happy. Public trust in this company is plummeting. We need immediate damage control. A PR blitz. Carefully staged philanthropy. We temporarily distance ourselves from Lex and issue apologies on his behalf while elevating you as a fresh face. That's the plan."
Joseph's expression hardened. "Wrong. You don't patch a sinking ship with paint. The taint of Lex's actions isn't something you can spin. LexCorp as a name will always drag scandal behind it. So we don't just distance ourselves from LexCorp. We bury LexCorp."
The room froze. Even Lena blinked in surprise.
Joseph stood, resting his hands on the table. His voice carried authority. "Effective immediately, we will rebrand as LuthorCorp. A new company with a new mission. Not Lex's shadow—mine. And I've decided. No more weapons. No more shady business deals. No more fueling dictatorships."
The board erupted in chatter. Some voices raised in protest, others shocked into silence by his boldness which they thought as stupidity.
One man slammed a fist. "You're talking about uprooting our defense division, the most profitable sector we have!"
Joseph turned to him. "Yes. Weapons production stops today. LexCorp made its fortune feeding conflict. LuthorCorp will invest in ending it. Education, renewable energy, space exploration—those will be our pillars. The future isn't in making smarter bombs. It's in teaching the next generation, healing the sick, and reaching beyond this planet."
The woman with the glasses narrowed her eyes. "And what of our overseas markets? Our assets in Bialya alone represent—"
Joseph cut her off. "Our assets in hostile states are liabilities. We withdraw. LuthorCorp will not do business in nations that use our tech to oppress their people. If you want blood money, go work for someone else."
His tone was flat and uncompromising as he subtly increased the gravity in the room, layering it with a pulse of psychic energy that radiated like a battle aura. Against weaker minds, it triggered an instinctive urge to submit. Call it cheating if you wanted—he simply didn't have the patience for pointless back-and-forth.
Silence followed in the wake of his words. A silence that pressed down on the room—not only because of the gravity shift, but because of the weight of his presence.
Joseph let it stretch before asking, calm but firm: "Any objections?"
The board glanced at one another. No one spoke. Whether out of respect or fear, they bowed to his resolve.
Lena broke the silence with a nod. "I agree with him. It's bold, but it's the best way forward."
Joseph sat again, folding his hands. "Then it's settled. LuthorCorp will not be LexCorp with a new coat of paint. It will be a company that earns its place—not through corruption, not through fear, but through progress. If you're with me, you'll share in that future. If not…" He let the pause linger. "There's the door."
One by one, the board members nodded. Most reluctant, a few genuine.
Joseph leaned back, satisfied as he released the gravity back to normal. "Good. Now let's get to work."