Daniel Hardman hated anomalies.
He hated them because anomalies broke systems.
And Ace Charles was the worst kind.
Hardman stood alone in the conference room long after the others had left, staring at the wall. The names gleamed back at him under sterile lights—legacy, blood, compromise.
And then—
Ace Charles.
Too high.Too clean.Too early.
Hardman's fingers curled into his palm.
"He shouldn't be there," Hardman muttered.
Jessica Pearson entered without announcing herself.
"He earned it," she said.
Hardman scoffed. "No one earns that at eighteen."
Jessica folded her arms. "He did."
Hardman turned sharply. "You let a child outpace me."
Jessica's gaze hardened. "You were never racing him."
Silence fell.
Hardman laughed bitterly. "That's your mistake. He's dangerous."
Jessica stepped closer. "He's controlled."
Hardman shook his head. "Not yet."
Ace sensed the shift before the confrontation reached him.
Pressure rippled through the firm like a misaligned gear.
Fight #12Opponent: Daniel HardmanStatus: Pre-Hostile
Ace adjusted his cufflinks as he walked through the hallway. People stopped pretending not to stare.
They were realizing something.
He hadn't climbed.
He had arrived.
Inside his office, Ace reviewed a case file older than the firm itself. Corporate espionage. Government bribery. Shell companies buried under layers of plausible deniability.
Daniel Hardman's fingerprints were everywhere.
Ace's system highlighted inconsistencies.
[LAWYER SYSTEM — DEEP DIVE]Corruption Probability: 92%Exposure Pathways: 14 viable
Ace exhaled slowly.
Hardman wasn't a monster.
He was a coward who thought time was protection.
The door opened.
Jessica entered.
"You're looking into him," she said quietly.
Ace didn't deny it.
"He dislikes me," Ace replied.
Jessica smiled faintly. "He dislikes irrelevance."
Ace looked up. "Is he useful?"
Jessica considered. "He used to be."
Ace nodded.
"Then he's already obsolete."
Harvey Specter noticed the change next.
The partners whispered.
The associates hesitated.
The firm's rhythm had shifted again.
Ace didn't raise his voice.
He didn't demand authority.
He exercised it.
"Harvey," Ace said as they crossed paths in the corridor.
Harvey stopped.
"This better be good."
"It is," Ace replied. "You're handling the Jacobs case."
Harvey blinked. "That's mine."
"It was," Ace corrected. "It's now a training exercise."
Harvey's eyes narrowed. "For who?"
"For the firm," Ace said. "Watch how I dismantle their leverage."
Harvey laughed sharply. "You don't take cases under a billion."
Ace leaned closer.
"This one will be."
Harvey didn't move.
"Or what?" he challenged.
Ace met his gaze.
"Or you'll learn why I'm here."
Harvey held the stare for a long second.
Then he stepped aside.
Fight #18Opponent: Harvey Specter's prideStatus: Cracked
Louis Litt watched everything unravel and reassemble at once.
He didn't like it.
He also couldn't deny it worked.
Ace summoned him late afternoon.
Louis entered, tense.
"You wanted to see me?"
Ace nodded. "Sit."
Louis sat.
"How well do you know the firm's finances?" Ace asked.
Louis blinked. "Better than anyone."
Ace slid a tablet across the desk.
"Then explain this."
Louis scanned it—and froze.
"These margins… they're impossible."
Ace nodded. "Because they're being siphoned."
Louis's voice dropped. "By who?"
Ace didn't answer.
Louis swallowed. "Hardman."
Ace's gaze sharpened.
"Evidence beats instinct," he said.
Louis nodded slowly.
"I'll get it."
Ace leaned back.
"Good," he said. "This is your fight."
Louis straightened.
For the first time, he wasn't being managed.
He was being trusted.
Fight #27Opponent: Louis Litt's self-doubtStatus: Reversed
That night, Hardman made his move.
A motion filed quietly. A whisper to the board. A suggestion that Ace Charles was a liability.
Too young.Too powerful.Too uncontrollable.
Ace received the notice as he left the elevator.
He read it once.
Then deleted it.
Fight #34Opponent: Institutional sabotageStatus: Active
Ace walked into the boardroom uninvited.
Hardman froze mid-sentence.
"You're out of time," Ace said calmly.
Hardman laughed. "You don't scare me."
Ace stepped forward.
"You should," he said. "But fear is inefficient. Let's use facts."
He tapped the screen.
Numbers appeared.
Shell accounts. Transfers. Patterns.
Hardman's smile died.
Jessica watched silently.
"This isn't an accusation," Ace continued. "It's a choice."
Hardman's voice shook. "You can't prove—"
"I already have," Ace said. "I'm deciding how public it becomes."
Silence fell.
Hardman slumped back.
Jessica exhaled slowly.
Fight #41Opponent: Daniel HardmanStatus: Neutralized
Ace turned to leave.
"Why?" Hardman whispered. "Why do you hate me?"
Ace paused.
"I don't," he said. "You're just inefficient."
He left.
The firm exhaled.
That night, Harvey stood alone, staring at the wall again.
Ace
The name that shouldn't exist.
The name that had broken the timeline.
And Harvey realized something worse than fear.
Admiration.