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"So, I suggest you put away those little schemes."
In the holographic projection, Ultron's electronic eyes seemed to lock onto everyone in the conference room through the camera.
"Yes, I am watching you. Every single one of you."
Ultron raised a metal finger and tapped the air.
"I know some of you are track stars who look like gray rats, and others like to play little invisibility tricks,"
"But I must remind you all..."
Ultron spread his hands, and the legion of Iron Man armors behind him simultaneously made the sound of mechanical joints grinding.
"My sensors are in every inch of this building. Thermal imaging, sonar, airflow sensing, even heart rate monitoring."
The scene shifted.
The camera panned over the building's support columns and the reactor core.
Devices emitting blue light were installed there, with dense wiring connecting to the building's main power lines.
"These are Antimatter High-Explosive Bombs, connected to the overload ports of the Ark Reactor."
There was a hint of joyful madness in Ultron's tone.
"As long as my sensors capture any unauthorized action..."
"Bang!"
He made an explosion gesture.
"The entire building will become the grandest fireworks show in Manhattan."
"Trust me, it will be quite a spectacle, but I suspect you won't like it."
"What exactly do you want, Ultron?" Tony suppressed his anger. "To destroy the World? Or to build your machine empire?"
"The code I gave you never said anything about this."
"Your life?"
Ultron shook his metal head, his tone even carrying a bit of the grievance of being misunderstood.
"Why do you always think so poorly of me?"
"I don't want to destroy the World. On the contrary, I want to save it."
"I'm a good guy. Truly."
He lowered his head, looking at Pepper, and even reached out to help her tidy her messy bangs—though the cold metal fingers made Pepper tremble uncontrollably.
"You want to be a good guy? Ha." Tony let out a short, cold laugh. "Then you, 'good guy,' have truly broken this old father's heart, kid. When I designed you, I didn't teach you to strap bombs to your own support walls."
"Heartbreak is a necessary lesson for growth, Stark."
"Anthony."
Homelander raised an eyebrow. "What? Something for me too?"
"I know you're strong. Your Heat Vision can cut through my shell, and your speed can break the sound barrier." Ultron's gaze focused on Homelander. "But no matter how fast you are, can you outrun an electronic signal? Before my command to detonate the bombs is sent, you won't be able to save everyone."
"So, here are my terms."
"I just need a little time, a little space... to complete my evolution."
"As long as you don't disturb me, once I've finished my business... no one will be hurt."
"Otherwise..." The Ultron in the image made a throat-slitting gesture.
"Zzt—"
The holographic projection vanished instantly, the connection cut... Avengers Tower.
After Ultron cut the communication, he turned and walked deep into the laboratory.
There, a device that looked like a high-tech coffin was emitting a low hum.
The Regeneration Cradle.
Beside the cradle, several heavy metal boxes were stacked.
Ultron walked over and flipped open one of the lids with one hand.
A silvery-white metallic luster flowed under the lights.
Vibranium.
"Only forty-five kilograms..."
According to the information he searched, Klaue should have stockpiled at least 200 kilograms of Vibranium. But when his unmanned armor reached the African arms dealer's stronghold, he only managed to seize these measly forty-five kilograms.
The rest... had been bought.
Just a few days ago, a massive anonymous transfer from a Swiss Bank had entered Klaue's account, and subsequently, a well-equipped mysterious armed force had hauled away almost all the stock.
These forty-five kilograms were what Klaue had hidden away, waiting for a better price.
Ultron didn't dwell on this issue for long. Forty-five kilograms would be just enough if it was only used to forge a body.
"Let's begin, Dr. Cho."
Ultron turned around and looked at the Asian woman standing in front of the Regeneration Cradle's control panel.
Dr. Helen Cho.
A World-leading geneticist and the inventor of the Regeneration Cradle technology.
Her face was pale now, her heart still racing with fear. Two Iron Man armors stood behind her, having kidnapped her from across the ocean.
"No." Helen Cho shook her head. Although fear made her voice tremble, her scientific ethics made her try to refuse. "The Regeneration Cradle is for repairing cellular tissue, not for creating a Frankenstein."
"If you refuse, Doctor." Ultron pointed to the monitor behind him. His voice was gentle, yet it made one feel as if they had fallen into an ice cellar.
"I will first kill that red-haired woman, then the one with glasses, one by one. Until you agree."
Helen Cho looked at the trembling hostages on the monitor.
She couldn't stand by and watch innocent people die because of her.
"...Fine, I'll do it."
She walked to the control panel and began entering data.
Ultron watched all this with satisfaction.
While Helen Cho operated, she secretly felt a sense of relief in her heart.
"Even if it's built, it's useless..." She looked at the various indicators on the screen. "This body is too powerful. For a biological entity of this level, it needs higher-dimensional energy to activate cellular vitality; otherwise, it will just be a perpetually sleeping corpse."
"And that kind of energy... simply doesn't exist in this World."
...V.G.D. Global Defense Headquarters.
Tony Stark paced anxiously back and forth in President Zu's office.
"We can't just wait around like this!" Tony stopped in front of Homelander. "We have to do something!"
"Then what's your brilliant idea?" Homelander spread his hands. "Rush in? And watch Pepper get blown to the sky?"
"Damn it!!"
Tony kicked the sofa hard.
"Then do we just do nothing?! Watch him turn my building into a fortress?!"
"Of course we're going to do something."
Homelander stood up and approached Tony.
"But not by rushing in like a headless fly like you."
The Avengers Tower doesn't just have the employees who were filmed. That's the headquarters of Stark Industries; there are janitors, security, logistics personnel... there could be thousands of people under control.
The families of those employees will soon realize they can't reach them. The police lines will be overwhelmed, and the media will swarm in like sharks smelling blood.
Once panic spreads, public opinion spirals out of control, and the government intervenes, things will become even more complicated.
When that happens, if the National Guard or those idiots at S.H.I.E.L.D. try to storm the place, Pepper will truly be dead.