The first blow landed on a Tuesday morning.
Police cruisers screeched to a halt outside AquaPure's warehouse. Blue lights reflected off the corrugated metal as officers poured in, holding a warrant. Workers froze mid-task, tools in hand. Maria stepped forward, panic flashing in her eyes.
"What's happening?!" she demanded.
The lead officer, voice clipped, held up the document. "We've received evidence of financial fraud and distribution of unsafe medical devices. We're here to seize records."
Gasps rippled through the crew. Rafael's stomach knotted. Fraud? Unsafe devices? He had published every record publicly—what more could they invent?
Within minutes, boxes of receipts, laptops, and prototypes were hauled away. Workers whispered in fear, some crying. It looked exactly like the evening news headlines HydraCorp's handlers had already prepared:
"AquaPure Investigated for Fraud."
"Community Startup Under Question: Unsafe Filters Found."
By nightfall, photos of the raid were everywhere. HydraCorp's smear machine framed it as proof their suspicions were justified.
The Codex pulsed in Rafael's mind:
"Fabricated evidence detected. Source traceable. Probability of HydraCorp involvement: 89%. Immediate countermeasure: Secure independent verification of seized products before tampering occurs."
Rafael acted fast. Through NGO contacts, he contacted a trusted university lab, arranging for parallel tests on AquaPure filters stored off-site. He needed proof HydraCorp's "unsafe device" narrative was fiction.
But the setup deepened. The next day, a leaked document appeared online: a falsified bank statement showing Rafael receiving large payments from an offshore account. It spread faster than truth.
"Foreign agents fund AquaPure to destabilize markets," screamed headlines.
Maria stormed into his office, slamming the fake document on the desk. "Boss, people are starting to believe this. Even some of our partners are freezing deals. What do we do?!"
Rafael's jaw tightened. "We don't chase every lie. We build a wall of truth strong enough to crush them."
He opened the Codex, its cold glow reflecting in his tired eyes. The screen displayed:
"Counter-strategy:
— Launch forensic analysis on falsified documents.
— Activate third-party whistleblowers.
— Leverage international watchdogs for credibility."
Rafael nodded grimly. "If they want to frame me, then I'll expose their forgery—and the hands behind it."
Meanwhile, inside HydraCorp's Makati skyscraper, Director Ramon Villanueva reviewed the headlines with a satisfied smirk.
"He won't survive this storm. By the time he proves anything, his reputation will already be ash."
But what HydraCorp didn't anticipate was how deeply the public had started rooting for the underdog. And when Rafael struck back, the truth wouldn't just clear him.
It would ignite something far larger.