One week had passed since Arthur had explored the Hell's Kitchen safe house, and his new routine was already a firmly established part of his life. His mornings were a ritual of physical exhaustion, his nights a quiet honing of combat skills. The legal work for Stark Industries felt like a familiar rhythm, a welcome anchor in his new, chaotic reality.
He was in his home office, reviewing a legal brief when his corporate tablet chimed. A message from Pepper Potts.
The subject line was simple, stark: "Urgent."
He opened the message. "I need you on this. I'm waiting for you in your office. It's a mess."
Arthur grabbed his briefcase and headed down the hall. Pepper was already there, her eyes glued to a legal document. She looked up as he entered, a flash of genuine relief in her expression.
"What's the emergency?" Arthur asked, taking a seat across from his desk.
Pepper's shoulders sagged slightly. "Hammer Industries. They just hit us with a motion for an injunction. They're trying to shut down the S.T.A.R.D. drone contract."
Arthur's mind immediately went to the future. Justin Hammer was a B-tier version of Stark Industries, run by an insecure and flamboyant man. This was his desperate bid to compete with Tony.
"What's the claim?"
"Patent infringement," Pepper said, her voice laced with frustration. "On the drone's flight stabilization software. It's a vague, broad patent that Hammer filed years ago. The technology is completely different, but the language is so broad they're trying to use it to shut us down."
As Arthur scanned the document, his enhanced mind processed the legal jargon in seconds. A new notification appeared in his mind.
[Legal Insight: A fundamental flaw has been detected in the patent claim. The patent is based on a concept of "Prior Art," but the core technology was already in public use two years before Hammer's patent was filed.]
,
A strategic plan formed in his mind.
"You're right about one thing, Ms. Potts," he said, his voice a low, confident whisper. "This is a mess. But I'll take it."
"You'll take it? What do you mean?"
"I mean, I'll handle it," Arthur replied, his voice firm. "Don't respond to the injunction. Don't even acknowledge it. I'll handle everything personally. Just… trust me."
Pepper hesitated, then gave a sharp nod. "Okay. I'll tell the team to stand down."
Alone in his office, Arthur opened the case files from Pepper. A small, predatory grin touched his lips. "Prior Art," he muttered to himself. "A fraudulent patent. A lawyer who's too arrogant to think I'd find it. This is going to be fun."
He worked through the night, but not just on the defense. He was also preparing a secret filing, creating a new legal entity for Stark Industries and a shell company to act as the holder.
__________________________________
Two days later, Arthur sat in a high-end conference room. The air was thick with tension. Across the table from him sat Sachs, the head of Hammer Industries' legal team. He looked at Arthur with an amused, condescending smile.
"So, you're the one who thinks he can take on Hammer Industries?" Sachs sneered. "You're a junior attorney. I've been doing this for thirty years."
Arthur offered a small, polite smile he said calmly. "I have one week and a strong conviction that you're going to lose."
Sachs laughed, a dry, humorless sound. "A conviction? That's what you're bringing? We have a patent, a contract, and the full weight of the law on our side."
He slid a folder across the table. "This is our offer. Give us 50% of all future profits of S.T.A.R.D as settlement. Your client signs it, and we all walk away. A quiet victory, I'm sure someone in your position would appreciate."
Arthur didn't touch the folder. His smile widened slightly as he just looked at Sachs, the silence a palpable weapon between them.
Sachs cleared his throat, the smirk on his face wavering. "I'm assuming you'll present a Prior Art defense. It's a standard play. We're ready for it. My team has meticulously researched every potential loophole."
Arthur leaned forward, his voice a low, calm whisper. "Meticulously? How meticulous were you, from where I am sitting your client is committing a fraud, isn't that right ,Sachs?"
Sachs's jaw clenched. "You're bluffing. You have no idea what you're talking about."
Arthur's smile widened. He stood and walked to a whiteboard. He picked up a marker and gave Pepper, who had been sitting quietly, a subtle, reassuring nod.
Her face tightened with worry for a brief moment, but she gave a small, almost imperceptible nod back.
"I'm willing to settle," Arthur said, his voice low and calm. "But not on your terms. On mine."
Sachs laughed again, his arrogance returning. "And what terms are those? Your client is out of options."
Arthur turned to the whiteboard and wrote a single, large number. $1.
"One dollar," Arthur said, his voice echoing in the silent room. "That's our counter-offer. You withdraw your fraudulent lawsuit, and you take one dollar. That's all you're going to get."
Sachs stared at the number, his face going pale. His team sat in stunned silence.
"This is an insult!" Sachs shouted, slamming his hand on the table. "We'll see you in court, Arthur!"
Arthur just smiled. He put the marker down, his gaze confident and unwavering. As Sachs and his team stood up, their faces red with rage, Arthur reached into his briefcase. He pulled out a single, pristine legal document and slid it across the table.
Sachs looked down at the document, his sneer returning. "What is this? Another one of your jokes?"
"It's a notice," Arthur said, his voice calm and clear. "A notice of a counter-suit from Stark Industries. We're not just going to defend against your fraudulent claim. We're going to sue you for the cost of damages to our reputation, the loss of business from the injunction, and all legal fees incurred."
Sachs's eyes widened. The sneer on his face vanished, replaced by a cold, silent shock. He had expected to win. He had expected to settle. He had not expected to be put on the defensive, to have his own arrogance turned against him.
"This is not over," Sachs snarled, his voice low and cold as he snatched the document.
"I know," Arthur said, his smile remaining. "And you're the one who is going to pay the price. See you in court, Mr. Sachs."
Arthur then turned and walked out of the conference room, his posture calm and confident, leaving the Hammer legal team in stunned silence.
In the grand courtroom, a tense silence settled. Arthur sat at the plaintiff's table, calm in his tailored suit. Across from him, Sachs looked haggard, his suit rumpled, a desperate anxiety he couldn't hide etched on his face. At Arthur's side, Pepper Potts sat, her posture a silent show of support, her gaze fixed on him with a mix of trust and nervous anticipation.
"Are you ready for this?" she whispered.
Arthur gave her a small, confident smile. "I'm ready, Ms. Potts. They're not."
The judge entered, a stern, no-nonsense woman with a reputation for efficiency. The trial began. Sachs's opening statement was weak and rambling, full of empty rhetoric and broad, unsubstantiated claims of intellectual property theft. He spoke as if trying to convince himself as much as the jury.
Then it was Arthur's turn. He stood, not at the podium, but walked calmly in front of the jury box, his voice low and clear. He didn't use a single piece of jargon. He didn't speak of patents or contracts. He told a story.
"Members of the jury," he began, his voice a calm, compelling force. "This case is not about a drone or a technology. It's about a simple idea: that you can't build your house on another person's land. That you can't claim an invention as your own when the true inventor's work is already available for all the world to see."
He then showed them the evidence. The archival video of the 2006 tech conference played on a large screen, the grainy footage showing the exact same technology Hammer Industries had patented two years later. Arthur pointed out the key details, explaining in simple terms how the technology worked and how the developer had presented his findings to the public. He then showed the MIT research paper, a PDF document with a clear publication date of 2006, two years before Hammer's patent was filed.
"Hammer Industries didn't invent this technology," Arthur said, his voice rising slightly, his charisma at its peak. "They simply repackaged it, claimed it as their own, and now they're trying to profit from a fraud. They are trying to shut down a better company, a better product, with a lie."
The prosecution rested their case. It was Sachs's turn to cross-examine. He stood, his face a tight mask of desperation.
"Mr. Steele," Sachs began, his voice shaking slightly. "You've shown the jury some very clever… historical documents. But where's your proof that my client, Hammer Industries, ever even saw these documents? Where is the connection? The conspiracy?"
Arthur's smile remained. "There's no need for a conspiracy, Mr. Sachs. The evidence was in the public domain. It was available for anyone with a search engine to find. My client, Stark Industries, has an entire research and development department that studies the public domain for new technologies. Your client, on the other hand, seems to have a habit of taking shortcuts."
Sachs's face went red with rage. "You're insulting my client!"
"I'm not insulting them, Mr. Sachs," Arthur said, his voice quiet but sharp. "I'm exposing their business model."
The judge had to gavel the room to order. Sachs, frustrated and out of options, played his last card. He called a witness: a senior engineer from Hammer Industries who was supposed to testify that the technology was an independent invention.
Arthur's cross-examination was brutal. He pulled up the affidavit from the former employee, and confronted the engineer with it.
"Mr. Peterson," Arthur began, his voice calm. "Is it true that you were present at a meeting in late 2007 where the 'Prior Art' of this technology was discussed?"
"I… I don't recall," the engineer stammered, his eyes darting to Sachs.
"You don't recall?" Arthur asked, a hint of steel in his voice. "Let me refresh your memory. This is a sworn affidavit from your former colleague, Mr. Jenkins. He states that you, Mr. Sachs, and Mr. Hammer were all present at that meeting. He states that Mr. Sachs explicitly instructed you to 'bury' the documentation because it would 'kill our patent.'"
The engineer went pale, his eyes wide with fear. Sachs looked like he had been punched in the stomach. The jury sat in stunned silence.
"Objection!" Sachs yelled, his voice cracking. "This is hearsay!"
"Your Honor, the document is a public record, and a part of the evidence," Arthur said, his voice calm.
"Furthermore, the witness's obvious discomfort speaks for itself."
The judge allowed it. Arthur pressed on, calmly and methodically, until the engineer broke down and admitted that the company had known about the "Prior Art" for years and had purposefully hidden it.
Just as Sachs was about to launch into another objection, Arthur pulled a final, polished document from his briefcase. He walked to the judge's bench and handed it to her.
"Your Honor," he said, his voice clear and resonant. "The plaintiff would like to introduce a new piece of evidence: Stark Industries Patent #476-88B, filed just two days ago. It covers the flight stabilization software and all subsequent upgrades, and was filed with a full defense against any and all 'Prior Art' claims."
Sachs's face went from pale to ashen. The legal team behind him looked at the document, their jaws dropping. Arthur had not only defeated their claim, but he had also preemptively secured Stark Industries' patent, rendering their entire lawsuit moot. He had played them at a game they didn't even know they were in.
The defense rested. The closing arguments were swift. Arthur's was a simple reminder to the jury: the evidence was clear, the motive was greed, and the only just outcome was a verdict in favor of Stark Industries.
The jury was out for less than an hour. The verdict was unanimous.
"We find in favor of the plaintiff, Stark Industries," the foreman announced. "We award them the full amount of damages and legal fees."
A wave of profound relief washed over Pepper. She placed a hand on his shoulder and gave a firm, grateful squeeze. Sachs, looking defeated and humiliated, simply stood there, a look of stunned disbelief on his face.
The courtroom was immediately flooded with reporters. They swarmed Arthur, a whirlwind of cameras and microphones.
"Mr. Steele! What's your reaction to the verdict?"
"Did you know about the 'Prior Art' from the beginning?"
Arthur looked at the cameras, a calm, professional smile on his face. "The verdict simply confirmed what the evidence showed," he said, his voice clear and confident. "This wasn't a case of legal maneuvering; it was a case of due diligence. When you build your case on a foundation of facts, you don't need shortcuts."
He was about to be whisked away when he turned back to the cameras, a slight smirk on his face. "And Mr. Hammer, I have a few words for you."
A hush fell over the crowd as every camera focused on him.
Don't do it.....you are going to get in so much trouble... Don't
"You bastard," he said, his voice loud and clear.
There was a stunned silence all across, even the camera crew couldn't believe what they just heard.
A reporter, caught off guard, stammered, "Pardon?"
Arthur's smile widened. "Don't misunderstand," he said, a playful glint in his eyes. "I'm just asking Mr. Hammer to Buy A S.T.A.R.D.."
A wave of laughter swept through the press, the tension of the courtroom replaced by genuine amusement. He gave a final nod and turned away, walking toward Pepper, who stood at the edge of the crowd. As he reached her, she playfully hit his arm with a soft hand.
"Why did you do that?" she whispered, a mix of disbelief and a wide, genuine smile on her face.
"Tony will love it," Arthur replied with a satisfied shrug.
__________________________________
Meanwhile, in a sprawling, gaudy office filled with chrome and neon, Justin Hammer sat in a massage chair, watching the broadcast of the press conference on a massive screen. His legal team stood around him, their faces ashen.
When Arthur said "You bastard,"
Hammer's eyes went wide. He slammed his remote down on the table. "You see that? You see that?! The little punk called me a bastard on live television! A stark industries attorney did that in from of the whole world. That's a billion-dollar lawsuit right there, Sachs! A billion-dollar lawsuit!"
His eyes narrowed as Arthur delivered the punchline. The laughter of the reporters echoed through his silent office. Hammer's face went purple with fury.
"He's mocking me!" Hammer shrieked, jumping out of his chair. He paced the room, waving his arms. "He's making a joke out of me! Who is this guy?! Find out everything about him! His family, his dog, his damn dental records! I want to know who he works for and who he reports to! I want to find every little dirty secret he has and I want to crush him! I want to bury him so deep in legal paperwork he'll be begging for mercy!"
"Sir, he reports directly to Ms. Potts," one of his lawyers stammered.
Hammer stopped pacing. He stared at the screen, a new, cold fury replacing his theatrics. "Pepper Potts. Well, well. So Tony Stark is getting a new puppet. That's fine. We'll find a way to cut the strings." He smiled, a truly malicious grin spreading across his face. "This isn't over. Not by a long shot."
__________________________________
Happy Hogan was waiting in the sleek black sedan at the curb, the engine purring. He gave a curt nod as Arthur and Pepper approached. He had seen the press conference on a small screen inside the car and his lips were fighting a smile.
"Get in," Happy said, his voice gruff, but his eyes held a new, quiet respect. He didn't mention the "you bastard" comment. He didn't need to. His expression said it all.
As Arthur settled into the leather seat, Pepper turned to him. "You know, Happy doesn't give a nod to just anyone," she said, her voice softer now, the professional mask gone. "You're one of us now, Arthur. In the inner circle. It's a small club."
"Good to know," Arthur said, a genuine smile replacing the professional one. He looked out the window as the city lights began to glow in the twilight. The victory was about more than a legal case. It was about belonging, about finding a place in this impossibly dangerous world. He was no longer just a man with a system. He was a part of the team.
__________________________________
Later that night, with the media circus behind him, Arthur found himself walking down a familiar street in Hell's Kitchen. He pushed open the heavy wooden door of Earl's Bar, the bell above the door jingling a welcome. The air was thick with the scent of beer, old wood, and the low murmur of conversation. Arthur was a regular here, a refuge from the sterile world of corporate law.
"The usual, Arthur?" the bartender asked, wiping down a glass.
Arthur slid onto a bar stool. "The usual, Earl. And put it on my tab."
He was sipping his drink when he noticed two young men sitting at a table in the corner, poring over legal textbooks. One had a mop of curly brown hair and was gesturing wildly as he spoke, his voice full of frustrated energy. The other was quieter, his head bowed as he traced his finger over the text, his dark hair falling across his face.
Just as Arthur's eyes settled on them, a new, unprecedented notification shimmered in his peripheral vision.
[Threat Detected: High-Value Targets. Nexus Individuals.]
[Name: Franklin "Foggy" Nelson]
[Status: Law Student. Potential Ally.]
[Potential Skills: Advocacy, Public Speaking, Humour]
[Name: Matthew "Matt" Murdock]
[Status: Law Student. Primary Nexus. HIGH POTENTIAL THREAT. HIGH POTENTIAL ALLY.]
[Potential Skills: Enhanced Senses, Combat, Perception]
Arthur's mind reeled. He had never seen a "Primary Nexus" notification before. The system's warnings, always so clinical, felt urgent now. He quickly dismissed the notifications, the small, holographic windows dissolving.
The louder one, Foggy, looked up and noticed Arthur looking at them. "Hey, you're Arthur, right? You're the guy that took down Hammer Industries. That was an amazing move, man. The whole law school is talking about it. That 'Prior Art' defense was beautiful."
Arthur's smile was genuine. "Just doing my job. You guys look like you're in the trenches."
"Finals," Foggy groaned, gesturing to the mountain of books. "This guy," he said, pointing to Matt, "is a machine. Doesn't miss a thing. I swear, he's got a sixth sense for this stuff."
Matt looked up, his eyes, hidden behind dark glasses, seeming to look right through Arthur. He gave a slow, deliberate nod.
"Don't worry," Arthur said, his voice quiet but confident. "You guys are going to be great lawyers. You just need to remember that the law isn't just about what's on the books. It's about what you can do with it."
"Thanks for the tip," Foggy said. "We'll remember that when we start our own firm. 'Nelson and Murdock.'"
Arthur's heart skipped a beat. A real, bona fide future had just presented itself. He could influence it. He could help them. He gave them a nod and finished his drink, a new sense of purpose settling over him. He was a part of the world now.
Later that night, as he sat in his home office, a news channel was playing on the screen. The anchor was discussing the case, calling him a legal prodigy.
[Intelligence Gained: +0.7]
[Charisma Gained: +0.5]
[Reputation: Stark Industries Legal Team (+2)]
Arthur leaned back in his chair, a quiet sense of satisfaction settling over him. He had done it. He had taken his first big step toward becoming a major player in the MCU.
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A/N. This chapter was so much fun to write.
I know what you are thinking did I come up with this entire chapter just to call Hammer a bastard on live TV? ...Yes I did, What are you gonna do, sue me? , you see what I did there?
Anyways tell did you like the Matt Murdock scene, honestly I was debating whether to go ahead with this, but then I thought this is my fanfic and can do whatever the hell want ! But.... no seriously he will not be a major part as of now and will keep his scenes limited to Earl's bar or a couple instances outside but let's see when we reach the Daredevil season 1 timeline I might go a bit further.
Just waiting for this to cross 15k words and then we are gonna rule webnovel , well probably not...but hey ! a guy can dream right.