BIOGRAPHY -- Page 33
The paint wasn’t even dry on the door when Nelson & Murdock received an unexpected first client. By this point, Wilson Fisk had rebuilt his position in the criminal underworld, dodged all outstanding charges against him and arguably restored his good name in the public eye. However, a man named Lenny Cebulski came into Matt’s office with information that could potentially bring Fisk down. Lenny was in the middle of explaining what he knew as a janitor in Fisk Tower when a sniper shot him through the window. Matt changed into Daredevil and pursued the assassin, tracking down the duo of Murphy, the Twin Killers. Daredevil caught Murphy just after a phone call and hit redial, telling Fisk he knew it was him. Lenny had actually been Larry, Lenny’s twin brother, as the real informant was too scared to approach the law office at first. Traumatized over inadvertently causing the death of his brother, Larry provided more information and enabled Daredevil to uncover key evidence of bribery, blackmail and other nefarious deeds from Kingpin’s safe in Fisk Tower.
Knowing he had been compromised, Fisk decided to attack Murdock from a different angle. Wilson Fisk and Willie “Crazyhorse” Lincoln came up together in the mob until Fisk murdered his partner to claim full power as the Kingpin. In regard for their former friendship, Fisk also adopted 
Willie’s daughter, the deaf Maya Lopez, as his ward. Now a grown woman with photographic reflexes and Olympic-class training, Fisk asked Maya to speak to the poor, misguided attorney Matt Murdock and put in a good word about his character. Sure enough, Matt and Maya were immediately charmed by one another. Once his pieces were arranged properly, Wilson revealed the awful truth to Maya – the true identity of the man who killed his partner and her father twenty years ago was the ruthless vigilante known as Daredevil. Fisk misrepresented still security images from Daredevil’s break-in at Fisk Tower to show him in possession of Crazyhorse’s gun, the murder weapon which had been missing until now. Maya adored Matt but, as the prize-fighter and martial artist Echo, she would kill Daredevil.
In the meantime, Matt supported Foggy as he was named a special prosecutor to pursue charges against Wilson Fisk. The Kingpin twisted the knife by hiring Rosalind Sharpe as his defense attorney. When Larry failed to show up for his testimony as planned, a motion to dismiss was granted, seemingly leaving Fisk untouchable once again. However, Larry had chosen to take the law into his own hands rather than trust the courts, and he secretly replaced Kingpin’s driver. On the bridge out of town, Daredevil arrived in time to see Larry shoot Wilson Fisk multiple times before the Kingpin was driven over the side, falling into the waters below. Daredevil took the gun from Larry, but this only led to Maya seeing him wielding the gun in a news report, further distorting her view of Daredevil. Without the Kingpin’s immediate protection, Foggy led a stunning campaign of arrests and convictions against Fisk’s network of lieutenants and bribed officials, with Matt and Daredevil privately supporting his legal efforts.
Echo attacked Daredevil on the rooftops of Hell’s Kitchen, leaving Matt caught off-guard by the situation. The flurry of attacks kept Daredevil from stopping Maya long enough for her to read his lips. Her mimicry of his moves and Bullseye’s was incredibly distracting and Echo stunned Daredevil long enough to get him at gunpoint. She only refrained from killing him when a group of teenagers interrupted the fight, and she refused to let them witness it. Matt realized Kingpin must have poisoned Maya’s mind against him, but he was at a loss for how to explain things to her. A second encounter allowed him to take advantage of her deafness by diving into a blacked-out warehouse where his radar still functioned but she was now deaf and blind. Matt escaped, but his tactics made Echo realize Daredevil must have heightened senses. She arranged for a new 
match surrounded by smoke, flame and intense noise to hamper his abilities. As they grappled closely, however, Maya finally recognized Matt and read his lips. She immediately realized Matt was too young to have killed her father twenty years ago and knew that Wilson Fisk has lied to her. Echo vanished into the night to seek out her father’s true killer. [Daredevil (2nd series) #9-15]
One evening, Stone and the Chaste made contact with Daredevil again. Stone revealed that Stick had been the reincarnated spirit of Yamato-Take, the Brave Hero of Japan and the one true wielder of the sacred sword, Grasscutter. Now, that spirit had been born again and the Chaste and the Hand were at war over claiming the next heir of Yamato-Take’s legacy. Daredevil fought alongside the Chaste against the Hand, but he was merely a distraction for the Chaste to move on to their true objection. As a result, Matt Murdock never learned the spirit of his sensei had been reborn in the small baby he named “Karen,” who fell under the eternal protection of the Chaste. [Daredevil: Ninja #1-3]
Nelson & Murdock chose to uphold the letter of the law when Dino Gnucci of the Gnucci crime family was arrested for a set of murders he didn’t commit. The Punisher preferred to see Dino dead, regardless of his guilt or innocence. Daredevil spotted Castle shadowing the trial and sought to take the Punisher down before he murdered his client. Punisher anticipated Daredevil’s involvement, though, and rigged up an ultrasound machine on the rooftop where he was waiting for Dino to be brought out. When Daredevil woke up, he found himself chained and bound next to the Punisher, with a gun taped into his hand. Castle told Daredevil he had one bullet and a clear line of fire at Frank’s head. He was going to kill Dino Gnucci when he came out of the building, 
unless Daredevil killed him first. Frank was sick of Daredevil’s constant moralizing, so he wanted the Guardian Devil to understand his position: Kill, or let a murderer kill again. Daredevil argued and pleaded and tried to make the Punisher see reason, but Castle wasn’t swayed. With great regret, Daredevil finally pulled the trigger, only to discover the gun was broken. His point made, the Punisher killed Gnucci and knocked Daredevil unconscious again. [Punisher (5th series) #3]
Not long thereafter, the Punisher sought out Daredevil when he discovered a Russian gang beaten to death with superhuman force. Castle recognized the assault was outside of his wheelhouse, and he figured Daredevil could call upon his “super-friends” to deal with the mess. Matt was irked at the idea of being used by Punisher for his grunt work, but he recognized the threat needed to be addressed regardless. He met with Black Widow and new allies Dagger and Shang-Chi as they investigated tunnels under the mafia den. Ulik and the Rock Trolls of the 
Asgardian realms had come to New York in search of the Ragnahorn. Daredevil was separated from his other friends and had to be saved by the Punisher, who secretly shadowed them. Castle continued to push Daredevil’s buttons, but he held the line against Ulik while DD retrieved the Horn of Auohumla. In exchange for leaving their realm, Daredevil returned the Rock Trolls’ prize to them. [Marvel Knights (1st series) #1-3]
Daredevil’s initial disgruntlement towards the Punisher didn’t vanish after a job well done, and he decided to use the opportunity presented by the fight with Ulik to gather a team. Matt met with Natasha, Dagger and Shang-Chi to assemble as a task force dedicated to bringing Castle to justice for his crimes. Daredevil’s loose ideas for their mission began to crystallize as a more permanent organization when Moon Knight offered to be involved as well. His resources as Marc Spector could be put towards an official headquarters, vehicles and other perks of an active super-team. Daredevil was reluctant – the occasional ally was welcome, even necessary, but his radar and other senses could be too easily distracted in a crowd. Still, Natasha got him to agree to 
Spector’s proposal as a trial run, at least until they caught the Punisher. Unbeknownst to them all, Castle spied on their meeting and intended to exploit the situation, deliberately leading his pursuers to threats or missions where he might require additional force to get the job done. [Marvel Knights (1st series) #4-6]
Dagger had been searching for her missing partner Cloak, and the team confronted the vigilante as his darkness grew out of control. Daredevil and several others were drawn into the Dark Dimension within Cloak. The realm was more representational than substantive, which severely 
hampered Daredevil’s senses. While others saw their surroundings as a nightmare version of Manhattan, DD perceived nothing around him and his friends but an endless, featureless void. Natasha had to guide him like a blind man through the cloak’s world, as Nightmare began to impose his own dimension onto this one. Doctor Strange helped Dagger purge Cloak of his darkness back on the material plane, helping Daredevil and his allies escape. The Punisher had also been among the criminals and sinners drawn into Cloak’s Dark Dimension. He was disoriented upon their return, and Daredevil used the opportunity to knock Castle out, completing his intended mission. [Marvel Knights (1st series) #7-9]
With the Punisher behind bars, Daredevil struggled to define what he wanted from the team going forward. He insisted on keeping a loose, unofficial structure to the group, but also balked when Moon Knight started making decisions without consulting him, even though he refused the title of “team leader.” Spector hired Luke Cage to join the group, and Daredevil started becoming preachy about being a vigilante for the greater good and not for profit, or the dangers of having a base like Spector Tower where your enemies can always find you. They tried to put aside their differences to hunt down a Serbian war criminal, but the search led them right into a large gang meeting. Bullet, Tombstone, Bengal and many others made it more than the group could seemingly handle. New troubles emerged as Dagger apparently drove off the entire mob when the others were incapacitated, having inherited Cloak’s darkness when she purged it from him. [Marvel Knights (1st series) #11-12]
Natasha took Dagger to rest while Daredevil and the others debated what to do next back at Spector Tower. The discussion was interrupted by Zaran the Weapons-Master and the Dacoits, all in service of Shang-Chi’s father. The assassins attached a bomb to the support columns of the building, bringing down Spector Tower. Shang-Chi left them in the aftermath to seek out his father. 
Spector was badly injured to the point where he could no longer fight or support the team, and so Luke Cage would no longer be paid. Meanwhile, Frank Castle had already escaped from custody to continue his war on crime. By the time Black Widow and Dagger met back up with Daredevil, he had decided the team was a failure. Matthew intended to continue his pursuit of Castle alone, and it hurt Natasha as he rejected even her assistance for the near future. [Marvel Knights (1st series) #13-15]
Daredevil returned to his solo adventuring. He had a brief encounter on a roof with the new Leap-Frog, Buford Lange, which was interrupted by a small child. Matt was stunned during the fight and thought Leap-Frog merely escaped when he was disoriented. Only later did he learn from Ben Urich that the boy was little Timmy Lange, Leap-Frog’s son, who had been nearly catatonic since the incident. Together, they uncovered that the hero-worshipping Timmy saw his abusive father attack Daredevil and tried to defend the vigilante. Timmy shocked Leap-Frog with exposed electrical wire, apparently killing his father and jolting his body off the side of the building into a passing truck. Matt met with Timmy as Daredevil to help the boy and encourage him to come back to his senses. [Daredevil (2nd series) #16-19]
Echo succeeded in hunting down the injured Fisk and left him blind. With the Kingpin seemingly weak and vulnerable, a group known as the Gang of Four attempted to make a play for his territory. The Owl, Stilt-Man, Gladiator II and a mysteriously returned Copperhead launched a missile strike on Fisk Tower. At the hospital later, Fisk used the media to manipulate Nelson & Murdock into representing his interests. He confided in Murdock privately that Daredevil would work with him to prevent the inevitable gang war that would consume the city if left unchecked. Spider-Man and Daredevil teamed up to trace the Gang of Four, who were far more vicious than 
either hero remembered. Shockingly, the quiet Copperhead stepped from the background and revealed himself as the hell-sent servant of a demon, orchestrating a human sacrifice to get revenge and escape from his fate in the afterlife. Copperhead’s ritual failed and the gang war fizzled out without his supernatural influence over the usurpers. As an added bonus, Foggy uncovered extensive building code violations in Wilson Fisk’s files after being given legal access to his documents. [Daredevil / Spider-Man #1-4]
Matt and Peter also teamed up when Mysterio reportedly returned from the grave to assault them. It turned out Quentin’s cousin Maguire Beck and understudy Daniel Berkhart were using Beck’s mastery of illusion to operate as the new Mysterio and Mad Jack. The real Mysterio, though, remained dead. [Spider-Man: The Mysterio Manifesto #1-3]