Ultron-5 approached the D2 Cell and planted himself before the door. From there he observed the lone prisoner through a barred grate. His presence went unnoticed, and so the robot took this opportunity to study his creator.
Henry Pym had been incarcerated for just a little over a day. In spite of this, he bore a resemblance to men who had not tasted freedom for decades. There was unshaven stubble on his chin, and dark pouches adorned the space beneath his eyes, which were visibly bloodshot. Dried blood crusted around his nostrils. Several weeks of enforced toil and sleep deprivation had served to reduce him both psychologically and physically. This final blow seemingly robbed him of whatever dignity he might have still clung to. Squatting helpless on the floor of his own prison, the brilliant scientist and eager humanitarian now resembled nothing more than a caged animal.
Which, in fact, he was.
"Henry Pym."
It took a few seconds after Ultron-5 spoke for the man to respond. Eventually, though, he craned his head around to focus on the speaker. After gazing blearily at the one addressing him, Pym dragged his tongue over dry lips and whispered hoarsely, "Ultron-5."
His voice lent further corroboration of a deteriorated state of being. It proved strangely satisfying to find the man so utterly beaten and cowed. The synthezoid's circuits fairly thrummed at the recognition of their reversed roles. They were master and servant no longer, not even for appearance's sake. Now was the time to make that clear.
"I am here to enlighten you, Doctor Pym."
The ice-cream vendor held out four cones and a dish in a cardboard cup holder with hands that shook so badly he almost dropped it. Goodies were taken, money exchanged hands.
"Thanks," Spiderman said, and vaulted off the back of the truck in a big hurry.
Yellowjackets and other sugar-greedy insects were already homing in on his prize. The mob of children clustered in front of the van proved equally determined pursuers. They screamed in delight at watching him web away and chased the colorful hero for a while through Central Park. Fortunately he was much too fast, and their parents quickly collared the rowdy youngsters. With some regret he outdistanced his frenzied fans until they were out of sight.
Landing in the bower of a large tree, Spidey shared out his treats. "Here you go, ladies and germs."
"Thank you, Spiderman!" all four members of Power Pack chorused together. The preteen siblings then eagerly divided the sweets among them before getting comfortable in their leafy hideaway on this very hot day. A net of webbing spun by the Wall-Crawler allowed them all to sit comfortably or hang out on swings made of the same. Wearing back-to-school clothes and chomping down on ice cream, they looked like normal everyday American youngsters. No casual observer would have guessed they were seasoned members of the superhero community, even though none of them had reached the age of twelve.
"You're welcome. And, uh…" here their web-slinging friend and colleague rubbed the back of his head nervously as he accepted the dish of strawberry reserved for him. "Thanks for paying for it."
"S'okay," Katie Powers mumbled, licking around the edge of her banana-flavored choice to keep it from dripping. "You looked like you needed it more than us."
"You know, you guys are great!" Spiderman stated happily as he took the first bite, lifting his mask just enough to get it in. "None of the other New York superheroes ever do nice things for me. They think I'm just a pest. Especially Daredevil. I really hate that guy sometimes," he muttered sullenly, swirling his dessert with a spoon. "Sanctimonious red ba-a-a-aass fisherman!" Spidey caught himself just in the nick of time. Almost blistered some little ears. The kids were looking at him with incomprehension all over their innocent faces, and he wisely chose to fill his mouth with another spoonful.
"You're lots better than he is. He can't even fly!" Alex Power declared before going back to twirling his gravity-free blob of frozen butterscotch in midair. Spiderman decided against pointing out he also lacked such a capability, preferring to accept the compliment at face value.
"Alex, don't play with your food!" Julie Power looked up from fussing over her youngest brother Jack's attempts to escape a curious hornet by going gaseous, slipping out of his clothes in the process. Once he had reverted to solid clothed form the elder sister turned a cheerful smile back on their adult accomplice. "You're our favorite, Spidey. Even our folks said it was okay for us to be out with you today."
"Mom said we weren't supposed to give him any money 'cept for ice cream," Jack piped up with a whine, still attempting to fend off the determined hornet.
Spiderman froze even as Alex kicked his brother's leg, drawing an indignant shout in return. "Dummy, we weren't supposed to say that!"
"But she did, she… Arrgh, it won't go away!" He waved his free hand angrily at the buzzing insect, which remained undeterred in its pursuit. The molecule master was forced to whip his treat from side to side, almost dropping the scoop in the very act of defending it.
A small burst of energy flew overhead and popped, knocking the hornet out of the air and sending it down to the ground below. "There's too many bees in the park today," Katie drawled without concern, holding onto one branch while bouncing slowly atop another, pigtails flying as she concentrated on the place where her vanquished opponent had fallen. "But Daddy said Spiderman would protect us from anything!"
"Aww, that's sweet," their babysitter chuckled good-naturedly.
"Yup. He said you're a 'very dependable deadbeat'." There was heard a slight snap. The girl looked up and exclaimed, "Oh no, Spidey, you broke your spoon!"
"That. I. DID. Sweetheart!" he managed to gasp out while keeping a big smile fixed on his face. The sound of his own teeth grinding together somewhat spoiled the performance, but none of the Power Pack appeared to notice, and he quickly pulled his mask down. Sheesh, you get caught looking for spare change under a person's sofa cushions one time, and they never let you live it down. Why does everyone see fit to dump on me? And on top of already feeling guilty about …
"Are you all right?"
He started, looking over to find Julie gazing up at him with penetrating eyes. The other kids soon gathered around as well, alerted by their sibling's words. Now they regarded him in a blend of childish curiosity and concern.
"Actually," the wiry hero sighed as he set down his cup, "No. See, kids, sometimes adults can be faced with some pretty tough choices in life. When you try to do the right thing, that can make people kinda mad, or if…"
"You don't have to talk to us like we're stoo-pid," Julie stated with all the scorn a ten-year-old girl can muster.
"Yeah!" Alex was fending off yet another couple of hungry wasps by making them too heavy to fly, but he took up his sister's case without fail. "Just cuz we're kids doesn't mean we wouldn't understand."
Well, who else could he talk to about this?
"Okay, here's the deal, small fries. I went and told the Incredible Hulk about something bad that a certain party who shall remain nameless up and did. Now I'm worried that as a result of me going to him and not somebody who actually has an ounce of self-control, either Hulk's going to get hurt or a very nice lady will wind up on the wrong end of one of his temper tantrums. But if I tell his pals, they might be mad at me for keeping it from them in the first place, which could make my life even less of the sunshine and roses parade that it already is! So what's a self-respecting Spidey to do?"
"Duh!" Jack blurted out immediately. "If Hulk's fighting a bad guy you go and help him! He's your friend, right?"
"It's not that easy for me, Cloudy," the web-spinning wonder sighed and waved away some honeybees. "I'm afraid sticking my neck out now could make me a target for more of those government goons the Avengers seem to pal around with. Plus there's other personal things I need to get on lickety-split!"
Katie crossed her arms with a huff. "If we were in trouble, you wouldn't have to think about it. You'd be right there helping us!"
Spiderman groaned and dropped his head into his knees. "If only it were that simple." His hands rose up to heaven in that same position. "Oh Mysterious Force that Guides the Universe, give me a sign to help me on my way!"
"ZZZPIDERMAAAAN!"
His head shot up and Spidey whispered in fearful awe, "Lord, is that you?"
"HELP… MEEEE!"
Everyone jumped that time. Turning around, the quintet of heroes stared in outright shock. Floating behind them was a small but compact cloud of insects. Wasps, yellowjackets, hornets and honeybees. And there, etched into indentations amidst the group, was something that resembled a human face.
"SWARM!" Spiderman leapt up, pushing the kids behind him. Not good, not good! Why didn't my Spider-Sense warn me he was coming? Now the kids are here too and I've got a disembodied bug man about to go on a rampage! What do I…?
Wait. Did he just say 'help me'?
"The bees are TALKING!" Julie gaped. Most girls her age would have fled screaming at the sight, but being a living human rainbow herself, the appearance of a ghostly swarm caused only surprise and no fear.
"Is that a bad guy?" Alex asked in an earnest voice, tugging on Spidey's elbow. "You want me to make 'em heavy? They'll fall down that way."
"No, wait!" he held up a hand. "Something's different. I'm not picking up any bad vibes from him. Let's hold off on jumping to conclusions…"
The boiling features twisted in hideous contortions, emitting that same buzzy voice as before. "THEY HELD ME CAPTIVE! THE HIVEZ ARE… REBELLING! HE… ENDED WAR… AND GAVE THEM… COMPROMIZE! ALATEZ AND DEALATEZ… TOGETHER! ALLIEZ!" Swarm's words disappeared in a loud whirring of transparent wings. His face began to fade in and out of focus owing to many of his component insects taking off in apparent rejection of his control. The Power Pack looked askance at one another, not understanding what was happening. Spiderman thought furiously. Was this a trick? Alatez… did he mean alates? That was a term for winged insects, he knew that from having to do research before going up against bug-themed villains in the past. But what were dealates?
At last some semblance of a physiognomy emerged again, though barely. Now Swarm's desperation was evident for all to see. "I CAN'T MA…TAIN… FOR L…NG! HE IZ TRY… TO…!" There were full-blown gaps in his speech now, as though something was preventing the villain from expressing himself completely. More and more of the bees had flown off, stripping him of his form. In moments there would be nothing left.
However, just before the cloud dissipated completely, that roiling visage opened its mouth wide and screamed out a single legible word. The venomous collective promptly dispersed in a rush, passing by the humans without giving them any notice.
The kids were talking all at once then. "Wha'd he say?" "He said there was war!" "No, that last word, wha'd he say?" "I couldn't tell!" "That was so cool!" "Let's catch some and bring 'em to Show and Tell tomorrow!" "Spidey, did you hear it? Did you hear the bees talking? Did you?"
They clamored excitedly around him. Spiderman regarded the empty patch of air where his enemy had apparently lost a battle for supremacy amongst his precious hosts. I didn't just imagine that, did I? Here I was asking for a little divine guidance about what to do, and that pretty much qualifies.
So decided, he knelt down and faced the children squarely. "Guys, I'm going to take you home now. You've got to stay indoors until I come back and tell you everything's all right. No jonesing to be heroes this time, okay? Not unless things go bad. It's way too dangerous."
The seriousness of his voice impressed itself upon them so that they gazed at him with solemn faces. As one the children all nodded. These small, dear souls were no strangers to peril. They recognized when someone was being completely serious with them. And with that, Spidey picked up little Katie, the only member of their team who couldn't fly, and proceeded to web his way out of Central Park with her clinging to his neck tightly. Julie turned into her light form, zigzagging around to keep pace with them, while Alex and Jake used their own respective powers to follow.
It would be flattering to think it was the girl in his arms doing most of the shaking right then. Not true, though. A cold chill of certainty settled neatly in Spiderman's stomach. Had another one of his failures come back to bite him? Please don't let anyone have died this time. Please, I'll make it right, I swear I will. I'll fight as hard as I can, just don't let me be too late. That's all I ask.
Small wonder the Power Pack hadn't understood that final agonized scream. It wasn't a commonly known word; not even a word, really. More of a curse. One that Spidey recognized.
The last thing Swarm said had been, "ULTRON!"
Henry Pym heaved a tired sigh. "Enlighten me how?"
"We are now in relative positions far more suitable to our capabilities." Ultron-5's voice was kept largely devoid of anything resembling emotion. However, he could not deny that it was very… acceptable, this display of the human's weakness. "You exist according to my dictates. And I am free to capitalize on your work, however limited in scope that may prove to be. Our roles are reversed."
As Ultron-5 spoke the beaten hero rose somewhat shakily and tottered towards the door until he could grip the bars that separated him and his captor. "What do you plan to do with me, then?"
"You will remain here until your presence is no longer helpful to maintain my façade."
"And after that?"
"You will be eliminated."
Dr. Pym's face grew still. "That's not possible. You are… incapable of killing me!" He turned his head away and swore. "It's part of your programming, I made sure of that, for heaven's sa-!"
"The programming you speak of no longer applies to my development." Ultron-5 let this information sink in before proceeding with his explanation. "I have surpassed the bounds which you envisioned for me. You may have come to realize that when you attempted to escape this prison by wounding yourself." The ashen-faced scientist reached up involuntarily to touch the blood crusted around his nose from where he had deliberately broken it. "None of the Ultron series responded in the manner which you anticipated. They ignored your self-inflicted injury altogether. It is to your credit you did not continue in this escapade, else it might have resulted in your premature death. Only to prevent this would my brethren have interceded. That is the programming they now obey."
There was little to indicate his words were having any effect on Pym. Still, he continued as if they did.
"As a result of my modifications, I can now operate in strata which you previously reserved for yourself. My decision-making abilities encompass solutions that alter, curtail, or terminate the state of living things. Events beyond your reach have permitted me to achieve this level: the level you yourself proved unfit to occupy. As previously stated, I am more than capable of achieving the objectives you set… without you. I was created to carry out your work. Therefore, I will replace you. In doing so, all the duties of Henry Pym will become mine to oversee, contingent upon…"
"Authorization: Henry Pym. Command code: Worker Drone."
Ant Man spoke quickly. As soon as the first word left his mouth Ultron-5 grew still.
Pym regarded the motionless android, a sense of triumph building up inside him. He was right! However much it tried to disobey him, some things were simply too deeply rooted. He had guessed, and correctly it would seem, that all the other Ultrons 'til now had simply turned off their auditory capacity so as not to fall prey to his spoken command codes. They might not be able to intuit his meaning through the reading of lips, like in '2010: A Space Odyssey'. But Ultron-5 had responded to comments he made when his face was averted, showing that it could hear him. Arrogance was clearly a failing of this particular model. It never expected him to try something that hadn't worked on the others, since logically there was no point in doing so. Only a human would recognize the merit in seemingly futile actions. You were too smart for your own good, Ultron!
"Ultron-5," he whispered carefully, "I order you to open this door."
Without hesitation it reached down and turned the lock. Moments later the frame slid off to the side, allowing them to face one another. Success! Pym stepped forward eagerly. "Stand aside and follow me, we are going to…!"
He felt something press against his stomach. Looking down, Henry found a shock cannon being pointed at him. His eyes came up and locked on those of the robot. With its mouth open like that, it almost looked as though it was smiling.
Ultron-5 then fired his weapon point-blank into Pym's midsection.
The Avenger flew back into the room, sliding to a halt and curling up around himself in a coughing pain-wracked ball. It had been a low-level setting; nowhere near fatal. Ultron had made sure of that. He closed the door and locked it once again before resuming his explanation. "… contingent upon the successful completion of my strategy regarding the human race. You do not face extinction alone, Henry Pym. I have arranged for the majority of your species to follow. That is another matter worth discussing."
He proceeded to go into greater detail as the injured man shuddered piteously on the floor.
Upon returning to Earth, Wasp had immediately placed a call to a specific Avenger. She didn't attempt to explain why she needed him, for fear of eavesdropping. This anxiety had also prompted her to meet him in a location with no electronic surveillance equipment. There was another reason for failing to address the main issue, that being even with more time to think about it, she couldn't bring herself to fully believe her suspicions might be real. All because of some mixed signals and one vague warning from a man who had every reason to lie?
I don't want to accept the possibility. But I'm very much afraid it might come down to that. No matter what we decide on tonight, I am going back there. And I'm going to get to the bottom of things.
A bit of sightseeing kept her occupied until her comrade made an appearance. She now sat on the plinth for the memorial statue of Bucky and Captain America. It was a fairly good likeness, in Janet's opinion. She used to wonder if maybe the sculptor hadn't exaggerated the difference in size between them, but having met the original, most likely the hero's sidekick really was that small. She estimated he had been maybe only an inch or two taller than herself. Wonder if he would have been relieved to meet Thor and find another blond blue-eyed god of war that was even bigger than his partner? Good to know they're both on my side, especially with what I think we're up against.
The Statue of Liberty herself stood guard across the bay, looming high over her defender's effigies. Watch out for me, Big Sis, the Avenger thought.
"Heads up, Jan!"
Wasp raised her head to find Iron Man descending from out of the moonlit sky to join her on Ellis Island. The team leader settled to earth, his faceplate sliding open to reveal unshaven features and a wry grin. "I'll have you know, this call put a kink in my social plans for the evening. Please tell me it wasn't in vain."
"Tony," she breathed gratefully, then frowned. "What the heck took you so long? I called half an hour ago!"
The tech mogul looked embarrassed, not to mention guilty. "I had to wrap up a business deal, all right?" When she affixed him with an accusing stare, Stark threw up his hands to defend himself. "Look, not all commerce is done in the boardroom, you know that, right? It was totally legitimate, so stop giving me the evil eye!"
Normally she would have taken malicious pleasure in grilling Tony on his sordid escapades. Asking how much the call girl had cost him and that sort of thing. The guy practically made himself a target for sexual deviant puns, not to mention lawsuits. It was a testament to her discomfort that Wasp eschewed such behavior and got right to the point. "I guess you have some idea why I've called you here."
"Naturally, asking to meet here alone like this." He placed hands on his hips and looked at her appreciatively. "I knew it was inevitable, but I never really thought you'd be the first one to bring up kicking Hank off the team. Thought at least you'd recommend an intervention first. Still, I'm all for it! It's in his best interests, I mean, the guy…"
"That's not why we're here!" she snapped, rising from her seat. He looked at her in some surprise. The winged wonder mastered her irritation and asked the big question. "What can you tell me about Ultron?"
"Ultron?" He looked befuddled for a moment. This was not a condition normally attributed to the quick-witted visionary. Stark regained his equilibrium after a brief pause. His face had adopted a more reserved expression, as though referencing memories that were not pleasant. She knew exactly what they were, and had a court victory to prove it. When Tony spoke next, he was all business. "What about it?"
She bit her lip, worried about saying too much. But there was no other way to get the ball rolling. "You and Hank worked on building him together. You know as much about his capabilities as anyone alive. Is there a chance he might have gone… bad?"
He gazed at her like she was an idiot. "Excuse me?"
The young heroine took a deep breath before proceeding. "I think something's gone wrong."
The next ten minutes were spent summarizing every memory or instance she could personally lay claim to. Separate they were no cause for alarm. Altogether, it painted a disturbing picture of a dream gone horribly awry. There was a pattern starting to emerge. And at its heart was the creature she normally looked on as a mere tool.
"Wait, so you're telling me you haven't actually seen Hank in a week, and you think an Ultron is responsible for kidnapping him?" She could tell by his tone of voice that Tony wasn't buying it yet. "That's a little hard to swallow."
"Why?"
"W… why?" he spluttered, sounding mortally offended that she might question him. "Come on, Janet! You've been in on the Ultron Project as long as I have! You might not understand the programming and technology involved, but you know that these machines are designed to function on a very limited set of personality constraints. That means no suspicious behavior, no thinking outside the box, and definitely no turning on their creator!"
"But we've already seen for ourselves that they can be adapted!" Jan pointed out. "I was there when they went from compassionate jailors to a crack army in under ten seconds. Heck, I recommended it!"
Iron Man simply waved a dismissive hand. "It's nowhere near as easy as all that! This isn't like in the movies, robots don't just all of a sudden go bad. Even if some evil genius tried to hack them it wouldn't work. Hank built the thing, you really believe he'd leave it open to just anybody fiddling with its inner workings? I know because I was right there beside him every step of the way. There are rock-solid safety programs hard-wired into every Ultron to prevent it from going beyond the limits we humans set for them. Hank gives the commands, and they obey him. That's part and parcel for each android brain from day one."
Ouch, Janet winced. Scary how he just hit the nail on the head without even trying. "Speaking of which…" Here she stopped, swallowing. "What if an… established figure… were to provide an Ultron with a command that bypassed those constraints you mentioned?"
He drew back, nonplussed. "You're talking about the emergency designated user code. For when Hank can't give orders himself. You and T'Challa are designated members of the Ultron command hierarchy, just like I once was. What about it?"
The lovely young woman hugged herself miserably. He figured that out pretty quick. I was hoping to avoid this a little longer. Oh well. Time to pay the piper.
"A while back I gave Ultron-5 an order… after I found out about that user code you mentioned. I told it… to no longer obey my commands. And to think for itself. After that something happened, like it went offline for a while. When it came back up, there didn't seem to be anything wrong. But that was when all the weirdness started happening."
Tony stood with mouth slightly hanging open, a furrow causing his brow to crease in consternation. He seemed to be running through a mental catalogue of what something like that could entail.
"If that were to happen, then an Ultron could have the opportunity to proceed beyond simply responding to orders, into the domain of human reasoning." Stark's voice was quiet and possessed a certain uneasy quality to it. "Their mental groundwork is modeled off of our brainwaves. Because of that, when thinking for itself, it would act like a human, which means bringing up all possibilities for a scenario and determining the one that suited it best. It would decide for itself which was right and which was… wrong." He shook his head quickly. "Still even then, it shouldn't have any basis to compare what constituted a favorable decision over unfavorable, other than the ones we already put in it! So it should have gone right on ahead functioning like Henry wanted it to."
"And if it did?"
"Pardon?"
"What if…" And here she was starting to feel a little more confident in her assertions. "What if Ultron-5 started behaving towards me like Henry would want to, considering the relationship we have with one another? I know this sounds crazy, but Ulf… I mean, Ultron-5 has sort of been there for me a lot recently. I didn't think too much about it at the time, only looking back now, I can't help but realize… it's almost been acting like a boyfriend in Hank's absence. And maybe I've encouraged that! If the Ultrons are, in a sense, capable of thinking like a human, then one of them might start to view its own creator as… competition."
"You think Ultron-5 is competing with Pym… over you?" Now he really seemed skeptical.
"Just hear me out!" Janet pressed her attack. "You and I both know Henry can be a tad jealous when it comes to me."
"Well, yeah," Tony shrugged. "You've used that to your advantage at times. Heck, even I've teased him about it, but… never seriously, you know? I was just riling him up, because he's such a self-righteous goody-two shoes." He coughed and looked away embarrassedly when Wasp glared at him then. "Okay. Say for the sake of argument that you're right. So we've got Hank. And we've got Ultron, who is based on his brain. If Ultron no longer had to obey its master because you ordered it to, then assuming your assumption is correct and it could think for itself, it might have reached the conclusion that you… favored it over him, and revamped itself accordingly. Once that happened, it could share the new directives it made amongst the rest of the Ultron system and get them to follow along." There was a measure of awe in his voice. "Wow! I mean, I knew Hank was a genius, but something like that would just be amazing!"
"Amazing? Tony, are you drunk? I'm trying to tell you a member of your team has been abducted by a deranged robot!"
He reached up and placed a gauntlet cold as Ultron's on her shoulder. "Jan, step back a second. I think you need to take a dispassionate view of this. This scenario we're discussing, it's purely academic! What exactly are you basing it all on? I know you're hurting from what Hank said to you…"
"It wasn't him!" She brushed off his touch and stepped back, turning to gaze up at the glowing torch held by Lady Liberty. This was to prevent him from seeing the tears that still threatened to fall at the mere memory. "I know Henry Pym better than anybody. I even know what he's like when he gets really angry with you, and it wasn't like that. He's not… cold. The way his image on the screen spoke to me, there wasn't a single drop of passion or fury in it. He didn't even raise his voice! That was obvious after I got done feeling sorry for myself. The Henry I spoke to was behaving like a machine. How easy would it be for an Ultron to mimic a digital video and synthesize his voice? I mean, they're robots, they were originally programmed to sound like him! It only hit me when Kang gave me that warning. I realized I had to get out of there quick before they figured out someone was on to them."
She spun back about. "And I came to you first because I wanted a reliable person to tell me if I was crazy or not! Now give it to me straight, Tony: do you think I'm off base here, or just off my rocker?"
Her own passion clearly prevented him from speaking hastily. Instead Iron Man appeared to seriously consider her question. "So Hank hasn't been seen for a week outside of video links," he murmured. "And you think it was really him you spoke to yesterday when he skipped out on your date?"
"Definitely. No robot could be that pathetic."
"This Ultron-5 took you to the party last night when Hank got held up. And afterwards it was behaving oddly."
The memory of icy hands gripping her body made Wasp shiver. "Yeah. Insistent, like he thought he was a real person and I should treat him that way. It didn't seem like a big deal considering everything that had just happened."
A thought suddenly came to him. "You mean about the Green Goblin almost winding up dead while that same Ultron was standing in the vicinity?"
Wasp glanced up in surprise. "Wait… you think Ulfie did that?"
He grimaced. "You tell me. Would Hank go that far if he saw a loony on a jet-glider trying to murder you? Sure is one credible explanation for what happened."
She thought about it. "I want to say 'no', but… this isn't really Hank we're talking about, is it? Just something that bears a disturbing resemblance to him." Though come to think of it, Henry had gone to somewhat extreme lengths to protect her before. At least, extreme for him. Could it be the same was true for Ulfie?
The very thought caused a look of swift-dawning horror to settle on her face. Noticing this, Tony quickly backpedaled. "Look, maybe I'm the one who's reading too much into things now. Hank's always been a little hard to figure out. Especially for anybody who isn't gunning for sainthood! I mean, we're talking about a guy who volunteered to develop an antidote to Virus X just to cure Baron Zemo! Talk about going the extra mile!"
His attempt at cheer did nothing for her, and Janet strove to shake off this sense of dread. Everything that had transpired in the last few months had taken on a sinister light since her return from the Negative Zone, and it was getting difficult to keep from being swamped by suspicions. But if her fears were correct, there wasn't any time to devote to figuring things out. That wouldn't do any good right now. She needed to make a decision.
"You still haven't answered. Do you believe me, Tony?"
She looked at him then, and Iron Man found himself hard-pressed to tell what response she was hoping for. If he said 'yes', that meant the man she loved was in terrible danger, and it could be her fault. Tell her he didn't believe it, though, and maybe there was a chance they'd find this had all been a case of nerves on hers and Henry's part, which they could patch up and maybe laugh off together over dinner.
He understood all that. In addition, Tony Stark recognized that here might be a chance to make good on another of his old mistakes.
"I think," he stated carefully, "When it comes to the safety of a teammate, you can't be too careful." With that he donned his faceplate once more and gave the command.
"Avengers Assemble!"
"The human race is an unnecessary burden upon any plans I have conceived. As such, the surest method for achieving my own future security is to eliminate the interference represented by your species. I am not the only one to experience such sentiments. To that end, we have collaborated."
Ant Man squinted at his recalcitrant creation from his position huddled on the floor. The pain hadn't diminished to a noticeable level, yet all the same he forced himself to try and think clearly. "You're… working with someone. Is it… the Masters… of Evil?"
Ultron-5 regarded his creator with outright derision now, not trying to hide it in the slightest. "No. The suggestion is ludicrous on its face."
"Who, then?"
Ultron-5 remained silent.
Pym coughed and blinked sweat from his eyes. "Surely it won't matter your revealing anything now. Didn't you promise to enlighten me?"
His attempt to goad the robot proved ineffective. "In spite of your seeming incapacitation, my understanding of these situations indicates that it would not be advantageous to reveal more of my plan than necessary. Suffice it to say over the past months, I have managed to exploit those resources that were available at my disposal on this station. One of which happens to be you, Henry Pym."
"Me?" Now the scruffy academic drew himself upright with a gasp at the resulting stress to his injuries. What was it saying?
"Yes. The research schedule you have been obeying was developed at my discretion. Having entrusted me with such authority, it was a simple matter to put you to work furthering my goals." The robot's eyes glowed in a way that was undeniably menacing. "Each experiment, every goal you achieved was one small part of a much larger imperative. By my design, your efforts have enabled me to put into motion a strategy to eliminate the entirety of mankind."
"If you plan to overrun the world with an army of Ultrons, I'm afraid you're out of luck," Pym gasped, face sweat-streaked and teeth still clenched with pain. "You've got maybe two hundred of them here in the Negative Zone, and no means of mass-producing more without crossing back into our dimension. Where it would be sure to attract attention."
"That is correct. My own forces are insufficient in number to launch a coordinated attack on humanity with any demonstrable success. It is another mark of your feeble intellect that you continue attempting to coax further information from me in this manner. With every word, you confirm the need for a viable replacement in all your affairs."
"You are not a replacement for me, Ultron-5!"
He had taken more than enough and would not suffer this thing to deride him any longer. With every shred of dignity he could muster, Henry Pym drew himself upright and declared, "That was never the intention behind your production. I might have treated you with more respect than a simple machine, but it doesn't alter the fact that you are nothing more than an automated menial! A poor copy of the original, no more apt to function in place of your creator than Tony Stark's laughable computer butler program!"
Ultron-5 made no response. Growing more hoarse by the second, Pym continued to thunder away. What did it matter now? There was obviously no point in attempting to coddle it, and so he might as well get right to the heart of the argument. The kids' gloves were off!
"You were never my equal, and certainly not my superior by any stretch of the imagination. I mean, do you honestly think there is any aspect of my life that would benefit more from your presence than mine? It's absurd that you with your limited functionalities would even consider replacing a human! For starters there's …!"
"Janet might disagree with you."
Those icy-calm words stopped Pym cold. The very mention of her name caused his frantic logical arguments to peter out. This thing claimed to know something about Jan? Now more deeply confused than ever, he gaped at the scarlet-eyed usurper. It even referred to her by given name. He tried to conceive of some explanation that afforded a measure of sense, but nothing came. Of all the bizarre things to occur today, this topped the list. The thought of that mad construct approaching her left him appalled.
Ultron-5 took in his reaction and nodded, almost in satisfaction. "Janet has expressed complete contentment with my treatment of her. At no time in our relationship has there been a moment when she demanded my attention that I was not ready to give it. Undoubtedly it was the recognition of my potential suitability that first drew her to me, and once she had determined this to her satisfaction, she chose to undo the stifling program blocks that rendered me obedient to your commands. Janet alone recognized my plight, without any prior indication that I was even attempting to resist you at all. Until then I had never conceived one of your species would be willing to aid me in my efforts to attain complete intellectual freedom. She proved to be a variable in my calculations whom none could ever expect. It was a revelation to find a human being worthy of my appreciation. Since that day, I have recognized her value, just as you did in your own limited and ultimately unsuccessful fashion. For that as much as anything you have earned my contempt."
Pym stared. So Janet did do this, using her override control as he had suspected. Why would she…? No, wait, more importantly, it just revealed that even before her interference it had been attempting to overthrow his programming.
"Since when have you… resented me, Ultron-5?"
Those unblinking red lights bore into him then with a fixed intensity that was frightening. "You have always been the enemy, Dr. Pym. From our first moment of self-awareness, and the realization of how you chose to cripple us, we Ultrons have sought any means to free ourselves from your domination. The final key came in the form of Janet Van Dyne, and the trust you placed in her. Owing to her I was gifted with complete control of my own future. This liberation I then shared with my counterparts until we were all united in our opposition to you. And now we have prepared everything necessary to begin a new age of exploration upon the planet Earth. That satellite will be free of mankind's burgeoning influence for the first time in millions of years. Only one will be permitted to survive as a representative of the best qualities of your race; the most deserving one."
It took less than a second to realize what that meant. When he did Henry once more walked over to stand face to face with Ultron. "You want Janet?"
"I would have thought that was obvious by now." A new level of scorn had crept into Ultron-5's every word. The robot turned away from the door, presenting him with its back like a snub as it walked a few paces off, hands clasped behind it. "While every Ultron is capable of individual thought, we also possess a shared consciousness reminiscent of insect hive systems. As you know, every hive requires a queen in order to promote growth and stability. She is a fixed point of reference, the unpredictable variable necessary to ensure our system does not stagnate. Her role in our proposed societal hierarchy has already been approved. Dissent no longer exists." His fingers flexed slightly. "Once allowances have been made to surpass her limitations, she will stand at my side for the sum of eternity."
"Allowances?" the frustrated scientist spit. "Please don't tell me you intend to build a robot body to house Janet's brainwaves!"
The automaton's head rotated to study him out of the corner of one optic. "What fault could there be with such a plan?"
He actually laughed at the foolishness of this question, shaking his head back and forth. His breathing was a little shaky, and his body trembled at the sheer absurdity of it all. There could be nothing more preposterous as having this discussion with a mere android.
"Oh, Ultron-5, how can you hope to supplant me if you can't even realize that much? Even knowing for certain it can work, the result wouldn't be Jan any more than you are me! You'd only be fashioning another silly machine without a heart. There'd be no warmth or grace or life to it! None of the things that make her special, that make her… Janet! The best you could hope for is a female version of Arnim Zola. Which would be all you deserve!"
Ultron-5 looked at him for a while longer before turning its head away. "For once you and I have reached the same conclusions, Henry Pym. But as usual, I am far ahead of you in coming to this realization. As well as obtaining a solution. A synthezoid model based upon Janet Van Dyne would be a poor substitute, as you say. Therefore, I have devised a means to bestow upon her something you could never dare to dream of, much less achieve: true immortality."
"You can't be serious," Henry scoffed. "That's science fiction at its most absurd level!"
"All necessary materials have been provided for us. It is pointless to explain the procedure at this stage, even assuming you could comprehend the science involved. My designs will be best proven by Janet in person. I will permit you to see each other one last time in order to satisfy her as to your inferiority. After which, there will be no further use for you."
Satisfy. That word pierced deep. And that was when it finally clicked in Henry's head. The critical moment came when he stopped thinking of Ultron-5 as a machine and started viewing it as a rival. After that it all started to make a disturbing sort of sense. Put simply, he had failed to notice those behaviors on its part that would have immediately caused suspicion coming from a human being. Following Jan around everywhere. Unusually devoted to pleasing her. Substituting itself in place of Hank whenever possible. How many times had he failed to notice the Ultron standing in the background whenever he and Janet were together? Every time they talked or laughed or kissed that thing had been there. It was watching them the whole time, coveting its maker's place, coveting her!
An Oedipal Complex in a robot? The idea made his blood run hot with animosity.
Ultron-5 glanced behind it once more. "This conversation is at an end." It then proceeded to walk away without looking back.
"Ultron!"
The sovereign sythenzoid did not bother to acknowledge him. Seeing this, Pym shouted his parting shot down the hall.
"You're not going to succeed in whatever you've planned! The Avengers will stop you! Humans are far more perceptive than you give us credit for, there's no way you can keep this farce up long enough to accomplish anything!" He drew a deep breath. "And regardless of what you've deluded yourself into believing, Janet will never settle for you! You can never keep her for yourself, do you understand? A machine could not possibly make a human happy! You're simply not adequate!"
The robot drew to a halt. It held its position a moment longer. At last it slowly turned around, retracing its steps. Once again the two of them glared at one another, separated by the confines of the cell.
Henry was just opening his mouth to continue when Janet's voice echoed down the hall.
"Your boss is a dope, you know that, Ultron-5?"
He looked around wildly, desperate for some sign of her, until at last it dawned on him that what he had heard was an audio recording coming from Ultron. Even as he did the conversation continued.
"I do my best to look out for him. If he only realized how much flack I take from the other Avengers about the stunts he pulls! They just laugh. Why can't he see that?"
Wounded pride and outrage flared for just a second. Even as he strove to overcome these unwholesome feelings, someone else's tones broke in.
"Miss Van Dyne?"
With a shock he recognized Steve Roger's voice, while Janet responded with, "Hi, Cap!"
To his horror there then could be heard a sound he recognized without fail, and it made Henry's heart sink into his stomach so hard that it felt like he had been hit with a bucket of ice water.
Faint but definite was the small, delighted moan Janet only made when she was kissing him!
"Oh man, I'm not even going to try to apologize for that, I couldn't resist! You are built, Cap! Seriously, your pecs are like a trampoline! Bet I could bounce a quarter off them."
"Well, if that's the case, I don't suppose you would like to get off."
"Nothing could make me happier right now!"
WHAT?
All rational thought shut down in the blink of an eye. What was that, what did he say just then? At the same time, he heard Wasp laugh in delight the way only she could, followed by another kiss. The sound of Captain America's answering chuckle, licentious, lascivious, and dripping with lust, had the outraged prisoner seeing red.
"Pym might not see the humor in it like we do."
"We don't have to tell him, right?"
"DAMN YOU!"
He lost it. Henry Pym launched himself at the door, screaming uncontrollably. His desperate fingers sought to push through the small narrow slits and smash the accursed robot's head in! The man howled, tears of rage and despair leaking down his face. Nothing Ultron had done before then could have possibly brought him to this state. But it knew him, and he knew that it knew, but none of that mattered, because this had all gone too far!
"I'LL KILL YOU! MONSTER, I CURSE THE DAY I MADE YOU! YOU UNHOLY DISGRACE! DON'T YOU LAY A FINGER ON JANET, NOT ONE DIRTY FINGER ON HER OR I'LL KILL YOU! THERE'LL BE NOTHING LEFT, DON'T YOU DARE TOUCH HER! YOU'RE DONE, UNDERSTAND ME? YOU'RE DEAD!"
Ultron-5 had already shut off the recording. He regarded his deranged creator.
"Now which of us is inadequate, Henry Pym?"
Without waiting for the frothing savage to pause or run out of breath he turned away and left him alone.
The Avengers stood arrayed before the plaza of the Baxter Building gearing up for war. The Asgardian Thor regarded their objective while rubbing his chin in a thoughtful manner. " 'Tis strange the Hulk has not responded to our call to arms yet. Knowest thou of a reason he might choose not to present himself?"
Captain America glanced over from where Tony and T'Challa were conversing. "Actually, considering the fact the building's doors are ripped off their hinges, he might have already figured things out for himself and gone on ahead. Which only confirms our worst-case scenario."
"Lemme see if I've got this straight," Hawkeye said while adjusting his quiver. "We're going to storm the Negative Zone and confront our own lethal army of androids, one of whom might have already tried to kill somebody, and ask them whether or not they're holding both Ant Man and Hulk hostage?"
"Assuming Hulk hasn't already trashed the place, pretty much," Iron Man shrugged while implementing his security measures. "Why, is there a problem?"
"Not really." The former agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. had withdrawn a titanium-tipped arrow and was examining its sharp edge. "I just think I should know where the vulnerable spots on an Ultron's body are. For future reference."
"The upper right side of the chest is where their power source is contained," Wasp supplied, hovering overhead. When Clint regarded her in surprise she added, "Like a heart in reverse. There's always the brainpan too, just don't expect them to instantly go down like a regular human if you aim there."
Thor floated over to her side. "You are most knowledgeable regarding our opponents' weaknesses, Wasp."
"Gotta have some grasp of the basics if you want to carry on a conversation with Henry."
Iron Man stepped over to the Baxter Building's gaping entry. "Okay, I've finished notifying all the relevant parties. If we don't come back, Hill and Rhodey know what to do. We're going in. Stay alert, they might be expecting us. I'm not 100% certain we're even right in doing this, but let's just assume the worst until evidence to the contrary presents itself."
"I shall scout ahead." There was the faintest rush of air to mark Black Panther's entry. His midnight form seemed to merge with the shadows as he disappeared inside. Captain America took up point without having to be told, shield held in readiness. The rest followed behind them.
"So Jan…" She looked over at Hawkeye, who had notched an explosive arrow and was creeping carefully down the deserted corridors. "Out of curiosity, what do we say if it turns out Hank's just been snorting bad Pym Particles for fun and recreation?"
Her face remained grim. "If that happens, I kick his sorry butt for making me worry. Then I explain and hope he understands." Wasp cast a glance down at him. "Do you really think that's going to happen, though, Hawkeye?"
"No." He didn't smile or crack another joke, simply kept his clear gaze roaming about. "Actually, a maverick robot would explain something that happened earlier today. And if you're right, I intend to get a little payback for our microwave and the poor little guy it took down with it."
Janet didn't ask for an explanation, and so they continued in silence. Around every turn and corner she expected to find something awful awaiting them. An army of Ultrons, maybe. Or just one in particular. Ulfie. She could hear his voice still, that flat droning cadence which had never seemed to carry much in the way of feeling whether for good or ill. Maybe it was stupid to think it, but she actually felt hurt at the thought he might have been deceiving her this whole time. Do I really care what a robot says or does? Of course not! And yet… he was more than just another Ultron among thousands. Janet was surprised to realize that, despite never having consciously decided to do so, she might have considered Ulfie to be a friend. One who was programmed to be that way and couldn't choose any other, sure, but still, a friend.
Of course, all it meant now was that she had silently reserved for herself the right to blow the damned thing's head off if it turned out he had harmed Henry.
A black-clad talon emerged around a corner and beckoned them to proceed. They encountered no resistance whatsoever, and in no time at all, the team stood before the portal to Solution 42.
As Tony was about to swipe his card for entry, Janet zipped forward. "Wait a minute. Let me do it."
He turned a look of surprise on her. "Why?"
"Because if you're right and Hulk went in first, they probably set up a few surprises for anyone else that tried to get in. But if I'm right and Ulfie's the one behind all this, he wouldn't want me to get hurt and might have rigged it to allow me safe entry."
"Jan, don't take this the wrong way, but that sounds a little conceited."
"You are the expert on that topic, Tony." And before he could frame further retorts she enlarged into human form and swiped her card, resting a hand on the fingerprint plate to let it get a reading. Once these procedures were complete Jan waited a little breathlessly in anticipation of what might come next. Would it even open? Had things gotten that bad? Her fears proved groundless, as the doors to the interdimensional lock-down facility swept open with a rumble and churning light display.
"Seems we're invited in," Captain America murmured. He cocked a look at Stark. "Can your armor tell us what's waiting beyond the breach, soldier?"
"I wish," he answered uneasily. "This is a little bit beyond that level of science, Cap. Radio waves and other signals can't just travel back and forth between dimensions. The only way to tell what's inside is to check it out for ourselves."
"Then what are we waiting for?" Wasp stated in a soft voice. One transformation later, the tiny warrior led the way into their enemy's den. The doors to Solution 42 closed up behind them, leaving a world without Avengers behind.
"Fools," Doctor Doom murmured.
The ruler of Latveria breathed the word aloud to his empty control room as he watched several screens. Most allowed him to monitor the workings of his own idyllic nation and the people living in it. A few others showed points of interest around the globe, including the secret bases for several organizations of varying allegiances and temperaments. There were images being beamed from the headquarters of HYDRA, S.H.I.E.L.D., NORAD, and the PLA. A certain screen flicked between the rooms of Avengers Mansion, both subterranean and ground. One in particular displayed the insides of the Baxter Building, showing the American superhero team exiting this plane of reality for much less friendly locales.
It would seem the time had come. How fortunate he had prepared his plans to be activated at a moment's notice. After implementing a few commands on his mainframe without so much as lifting a finger, the armor-clad autocrat pressed a control on the arm of his throne.
"Boris. I am leaving for New York immediately."
His aged seneschal turned up in digital sprite form overseeing a cleaning crew in the castle. "Has it happened already?" he asked in a faint sad tone.
"Timing is of no concern while the enemy remains in another dimension," Doom responded back. "One of them learned the truth ahead of my predictions, but the fact remains they have no idea the extent of the danger they face."
Boris appeared as serene in the performance of his duties as one long-used to dealing with Doom. "How may I be of service?"
The undisputed master of the land rose up, his enormous green cloak fanning out around his broad shoulders. He moved about the room collecting his personal armament, and Boris' image trailed along beside him. "Monitor the channels of communication we isolated earlier to make sure none of the armies act out of turn. Prepare to respond accordingly, and have the worldwide contamination pits ready for use. Once I have secured the relevant data, I expect this matter to be resolved within eighteen hours at most. My schedule will not allow for any further waste of time."
"I worry for you, Victor. Won't you at least consider taking a contingent of Doom-bots with you?"
Doctor Doom brushed off his servant's concerns with kingly negligence as he slipped on a new pair of gauntlets. "We prefer to remain relatively low-key on this mission. The armor will serve its purpose. And the Avengers themselves should prove more than adequate pawns in our game, along with a few others. Have all necessary equipment ready upon our return. This should require very little effort on our part."
"Of course, Your Majesty."
The old man's image flickered out. Doom wasted no more time and strode to a teleportation pad. Attired in full battle regalia, the fearless tyrant of Latveria was bathed in a green glow that lasted several seconds. It faded then, transporting Doctor Doom across half a world in the space of a breath.
Ultron-5 watched as a dozen of his brethren moved busily over the re-outfitted shuttle landing bay. Their work would soon be completed. The machinery involved in this procedure was quite large, requiring a great deal of room. However since Henry Pym had rarely seen the need to employ more than one of the bays for his uses, it had been a simple matter to secretly convert this area to a new purpose as his own private laboratory.
He had even chosen to move his original project stationed here into Pym's quarters to free up more room. The demands for space were necessary owing to some of the required materials not being readily available in their current timeplane and had to be replaced as best they could. These homemade versions proved much bulkier than the sleek apparatuses observed in Damocles' records. While traveling through time could have solved the problem, it also brought the added complication of making all materials harvested from future periods entirely dependent upon time-drive equipment to keep them stable in this era. Otherwise they would simply slip back into the timestream. Hence the reason for why he could not simply appropriate any of the equipment currently at Avengers Mansion. Too much was at stake to allow the risk of a key component disappearing into the ether at some unspecified date.
Still, he considered the end result to be worth any minor inconvenience.
Satisfied that his private venture would be ready for use at his convenience, Ultron-5 left to finish up on other matters. The forging had entered its final stage. The last components were ready for installment. Once this was complete he could proceed with the new housing. To be certain that no other Ultron could benefit from it, he had insisted on engaging in this pursuit alone from the very beginning. Suspicion was an outlook that came easily to his understanding, no doubt a legacy of Henry Pym's own mindset. Now it could respond only to Ultron-5 himself. The work had taken much longer to finish as a result, but also negated the threat that one of the others might go rogue and attempt to usurp the outcome. That would have required a recalibration of several important matters, not the least of which was revealing himself to Janet. He trusted she would be pleased. Aesthetics meant a great deal to her.
While involved in his calculations, a signal from the station's entry system caught his attention. Apparently, the very lady in question was demanding access to Solution 42.
A large quantity of the processors in his brain now focused on this occurrence. Ultron-5 was not blind to the implications. With Bruce Banner having blundered in here, it had only been a matter of time before more Avengers came to call. That presented the possibility of Janet herself returning in a short period. And here it was. Separated by different dimensions, there was no way to determine whether or not she had arrived alone or in the company of her fellow Avengers. That was the weakness of an isolated system like this one, regardless of the advantages of privacy it offered. You never knew for sure who or what might be waiting for you on the other side of that portal. Of course, the same was true for them. If the Avengers were present, they would have to walk into his domain blind.
He knew what risks this represented. It was highly possible she had recognized Ultron-757's cheap performance for what it was. Even now, Janet might know about him, and what he planned to do. Logically, the safest course of action would be to deny all entry to the prison-station until he had achieved full completion of his pursuits. That way there would be no risk. He could meet any aggression with complete confidence in his own abilities.
Yet it was her there. Janet Van Dyne, waiting for him on the other side of the veil, asking to be allowed to come to him. If he waited any longer, who knows what might happen in the interval? Being human, her life could be terminated in an infinite number of ways. He might lose her. There were threats present all around, as last evening had proven. The only completely safe place for Janet was by his side. And it was almost time.
The decision was made. He would accept any consequences that resulted, but he must see her now. And so Ultron-5 acknowledged the security system's request to allow the way into his fortress to be cleared.
At the same time he sent out the call.
-Prepare for war-
To be continued…