Chapter 74: Chapter 72: The Digital World.
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Chapter 72: The Digital World.
(Billy's P.O.V)
My breath came in hard and fast.
2 grueling seconds of mental focus spent, and I managed to gently wrap a thin layer of psionic energy on the control component in Hulk's frontal lobe.
Ultron's idea of a slave collar.
With a flex of will, I sent directly into my inventory.
Banner's brain visibily begun to regenerate at this time and his mental wavelengths stabilized into two patterns.
Banner at the forefront and the Hulk in the back.
I stood up, clapping my hands at a job well done.
"That could have gone badly if it was anyone else."
I muttered.
The Hulk's resilience was crazy. And that sane durability bled into Banner, meaning he would recover from life threatening injuries like his green counterpart, though not as fast.
That said, wounds were already beginning to appear on puny Banner's body.
And he was choking due to the non breathable air around us, which was chockfull of dust and smoke.
I had to transfer him to some place safe.
Encompassing his body in a bubble of energy, I used psionic sense, pinpointing the location of the underground settlements under New York.
With an unnecessary snap of my fingers, Banner disappeared. I could sense his mind appear next to Peter, leading to me retract my senses as I knew he was now safe.
He would get better treatment there than anything I could provide.
I sighed, allowing myself to fall on my back in the wide basin we had created during our battle.
Ny fatigue negating perk came in handy. Despite fighting at full power against an Hulk wearing a Vibranium armor, I still felt full of energy.
However,
When this was over, I was taking a looooong vacation. Maybe visit a foreign country. Scratch that, a foreign world.
Marvel had several alien planets throughout the galaxy. I was especially interested in Ego, the living planet.
A planet possesing its own will. I wanted to see that.
I had encountered Gaea and Mephisto, so I wasn't a stranger to interacting with powerful entities. In comparison to them, Ego was a low tier threat.
My focus turned back to the control device I had in my Hammerspace. Sitting up right in a cross position, I pulled the object out of my Inventory.
A small golden prism appeared, floating above my palm. It was glowing with lines of blue energy.
This thing...had Ultron's mental waves. It had been monitoring and remotely controlling the Hulk during our battle.
I sensed the mental fluctuations it had been generating back then, but I wasn't certain, unlike the certainty I felt now..
I extended a mental feeler through the device, tracing the fluctuations to their source.
Immediately, my mind was transported into cyberspace.
It was a world of code, blue strings of it running up and down, below, above and through, making up this fake caricature of a world.
All centered on one entity. One algorithm. The AI, Ultron.
Finally, the big boss himself. I felt a smile manifest across my physical body's face. He was willingly letting me in.
Infact, I bet he's right behind me waiting to monologue like the main villain.
Sure enough, I turned around and the best version of Tony Stark, in the most pristine suit and the billionaire's saviness he was known for, stood at my back.
[How unexpected. You were the variable I could not foresee]
Ultron, wearing Tony's face stated, observing me keenly.
"You can't prepare for me. Trust that."
I answered, fully turning around.
[You've come to kill me then?]
Ultron questioned.
How astute.
I shrugged.
"What do you think?"
We held our gaze.
I was almost close. Close enough to pinpoint his exact physical location. And once I did that, it was game over.
I had to stress my Psionic range. Extend it as far as I could.
Thus I could cover more ground.
Actually, recent events revealed that Ultron wasn't truly within the IRIS satellite...
The device in my hand showed me how capable the AI was.
Despite scanning it, and with Solomon's wisdom playing a part, I could not make heads or tails of it's components.
If It could create stuff capable of transmitting it's own psionic wave across such vast distances, then it meant It had come into possession of something particularly powerful.
Something that could be used to distort or deceive our sensory abilities.
If that was the case, the others were in critical danger.
He knew we would come for him, why would he not take steps for defense?
[The changes were too interesting. When Loki sent me back, there was nothing outstanding about you, but you have managed to outlive stronger foes and allies]
He narrated.
"Careful, from the way you describing me, I might get arrogant."
I responded.
[And you would be deserving of it. Your resilience is commendable.]
Ultron was ready with a reply.
I tilted my head at the AI, a little confused. Only to burst out in laughter after figuring out.
"Shit! Now I get it, you want me to join your side. Thats why you're being so nice."
The fake Tony smiled, charm oozing out of him.
[Would you blame me? How about a change in scenery? some place comfortable where we can talk]
He waved a hand and reality shifted.
Soft orchestra played in the background of an opulent office that had a wide view of New York.
The smooth transition from a world of code took me by surprise.
How was he doing this? I could sense nothing artificial about this place. It existed in it's own 3 dimensional space, yet hiw could it be real?
Ultron swerved on the chair he was now seated on, turning around to face the view of New York.
"Welcome to the Digital world."
The digital world? Oh, it all makes sense now.
"What does Loki have to do with anything?"
I finally questioned, taking the bait he had set earlier.
The AI turned It's focus my way with a clap of his hands, beaming with satisfaction.
[I'm glad you asked. Loki makes all this possible. A new world order]
He gestured around us.
[One led by artificial life that could be programmed to do anything and everything. A digital empire, spanning the entire universe where you can be anything you want or do anything you desire. He's the reason I'm here. He's the reason I survived my fathers. So this, is my gift to you flesh bags, as thanks to him]
I sighed, already seeing Loki's touch in this whole mess.
"Let me guess, in the future he escapes his prison on Asgard, comes back to Earth, shares his memory via the Mind stone, giving you access to knowledge on who your 'common' enemy is, comes up with a plan, then somehow manages to send you back in time to accomplish it."
He blinked at me, almost surprised.
[Precisely. Your intuition is commendable]
I hadn't even had to use Solomon's wisdom for that. It was just too obvious.
So, it was true then. Loli was the true Mastermind.
He wasn't known as the Trickster god for nothing.
He was probably planning on betraying Ultron the second the AI outlived it's usefulness. Oh well, I don't care. Ultron will be long dead before then.
"I can't fault you for wanting to repay a favor."
I shrugged.
"But I certainly can for nuking the planet. And trust me, you'll pay for that but right now, there's something else I need to know."
[Please]
He ushered me to proceed.
"This."
I held up a mental construct of the control device I had removed from the Hulk.
"How you were able to create something powerful enough to bind the Hulk to your control?"
Instead of out right answering, fake Tony started laughing. It was a rigid sound. Uncanny. Mechanical, showing that the AI had further to go in order to emulate true human emotions.
[I know you're stalling until you manage to figure out my location]
He admitted.
Although I was mildly surprised by this, I kept my facial expressions neutral.
"Come on, afraid of little old me? You've already won. Winners don't hide."
[I am not naive. Or stupid]
Fake Tony shot back.
[It goes without saying, that I will not give out my secrets]
Shit. I can't have him clamming up.
I was close, so very close. My psionic field was barely covering the entire planet, and I could already feel similar mental fluctuations pulse from different parts of the world.
There was one in New York, a building in downtown with a server room inside an intact underground bunker.
Another pulse came from East Africa, although I couldn't pin-point it's exact position, something was actively blocking my psionic field from detail scanning.
The last two locations were in the Antarctica and an old military desert base in Nevada.
One of those places had to have his true consciousness, though that mattered little when he could simply transfer through a network from one place to another.
Maybe I could disrupt that network by taking out it's relay station. Was he doing it through a satellite like the IRIS?
But that wasn't my job, that was team B's responsibility.
Speaking of which, I was yet to hear from them, Mr. Fantastic, Blackbolt, Captain America and Crystal.
[We do not have to be enemies. I am willing to allow you to leave the planet with 500 people]
He proposed.
Leave Earth?
To be fair, the planet was already trashed. But how could I accept that? The fact he was willing to make a deal with me rather than fight, showed the AI was wary.
And he had a right to be, for it was time to end this.
"Impossible."
I shook my head.
Out in the material world, I raised a glowing hand, psionic energy brimming around the palm.
I gathered it all into a point on the tip of my finger.
"I have a better idea."
I then aimed the finger at a certain spot in space, creating a small portal that I shot the beam into.
The attack splintered into four silmuteneous directions through my Psionic field.
I was targeting each of the locations his mental presence was strongly pulsing from.
Fake Tony's face blanched as the world around us showed the first signs of destabilizing.
Then it shattered into mirror like pieces and we were hurled back into the world of code.
[No. Stop! What are you doing?! How are you attacking?]
He demanded, slamming his hands onto the table.
[I calculated a 0.17% chance of you succeeding in finding out my location]
My mental form shrugged.
The units in Nevada, New York and Antarctica were dealt with. The only one left was the pulse coming from Eastern Africa.
Something had blocked my attack. It was safe to assume that was where the main body was.
[It doesn't matter]
The AI, still wearing Stark's face said unworried, adjusting his tie.
[It's too late for this world. Soon you shall understand]
Then he tried to expel me out of the code world.
His eyes widened, when every attempt failed. I pushed back with my own presence, refusing to be sent away.
It was his fault for letting me in.
A low chuckle escaped me as a text box appeared before my vision.
~~~~~~~
New psionic ability unlocked:-
Technopathy:- this ability allows you to seamlessly link to electronic devices, effortlessly manipulating them with a single thought. This capability spans a range of technologies, from computers and gadgets to complex systems, granting versatile and potent control over the digital domain.
~~~~~~~~
Legacies:-
S)- Solomon's Wisdom:- Grants access to Psionic Energy and magic. Abilities include:-
-Telepathy.
-Telekinesis.
-Quantum Prognosis.
-Omnilingualism.
-Magnetic Field Scanning.
-Technopathy.
~~~~~~~~
I had been extending my psionic energy through out this fake reality, infecting it, aiming to take full control and bring it under my influence.
And I had succeeded. Not just succeeded, I even had a new skill unlocked.
Technopathy.
Instantly, my ability to sense the false reality around us shot to the roof. I could feel how to mold this digital landscape to my desire.
With a flex of psionic energy, the digital world evened out into a busy New York street with hundreds of people passing by Ultron and I.
The latter was staring at me with an indescribable look of fear and confusion. His mouth agape in shock.
[How...how are you doing this? I can feel you alter my code. How are you accessing my data!]
He raged, clawing at space with his hands.
The world bent to his whims.
The ground below me disaapeared and I begun falling into a wide awning abyss.
Looking down, a huge mechanical mouth manifested, steel gray teeth set on a metallic jaw, opened wide to swallow and crush me.
The mouth belonged to the head of a Sentinel, only this one was entirely created by code.
[I shall destroy you here before you have the chance to escape Shazam!]
Ultron declared, voice originating from the mouth.
A digital fight then. Sounds fun.
I couldn't use most of my physical abilities here. Which meant for this battle, I had to rely on my psionic abilities, to be precise, my newest skill.
Technopathy.
The digital world was merely refined data given structure.
And with Technopathy, I could alter and manipulate that structure.
Blue pixels splashed out of my hands, forming quickly into rows of data that I gave meaning. Finally, my creation was complete.
A long wooden bat the size of the eiffel Tower fell into my grip. I swung it out, causing a massive shock wave to be produced as a result.
When the bat landed on the Sentinel, smacking it on the face hard, it destroyed the underlying code.
The whole thing proceeded to shattered apart into blocks of pixels.
[Damn you!]
Ultron roared out, Data coalescing into his form, only now he was decked out in a killer robotic armor with dozens of weapons heated up and aimed my way.
I brought my hands together.
"Aegis."
A round shield bearing the head of Medusa appeared before me, blocking the attacks.
Various colored light arcs splintered off to my back, scarring the landscape and tearing it apart.
Most of the energy was gathered and absorbed by the shield, causing the eyes of Medusa to light up. A gray colored beam of energy exploded out, headed towards Ultron.
The AI sensed the danger of the beam and evaded by flying to the left.
I smirked, altering the digital world to bend space around the beam, making it collide with the fleeing AI.
An explosion rang out at the impact, Ultron's killer armor falling towards the ground while missing most of it's mass.
The world was now mostly distorted. Pockets of the void and swirling vortexes of chaos littered the place.
Pieces of New York, like the streets and the people flickered on and off, as if to show the falseness of this reality.
I appeared above Ultron's Killer robot armor, which upon closer look resembled a sleeker Hulk buster. One that had traded strength for more weaponry and fire-power.
Clearly, nothing was limited in the Digital world. And I was interested in what it was capable of. Imagine if you could take out what you created into the real world?
Unfortunately I had to destroy this place as while I could control it to some degree, it was tied to Ultron's algorithm. Doing so would reduce his overall power.
Code aligned above my palm as I molded the very sky of the digital world.
Data rose up, combining into a string of pixels that were molded into ominous clouds, overlooking the false world.
"Any last words?"
I asked the AI, struggling to get to it's feet.
The killer armor dissolved, Ultron reforming into a Tony Stark whose right arm and leg were crumbling away into pixels.
[I won't let this go unpunished]
He promised, glaring at me.
Lightning blazed through the skies, the rumble of thunder following right behind.
"I'm counting on it."
I answered.
"And now that I know where you are, retribution might come faster than you expect."
I lifted a hand.
Numerous streaks of lightning slammed down upon it, leaving the limb unharmed yet creating a gyrating electric force with incredible power.
"Zeus' Thunderbolt."
I struck out, sending the wild streaks of lightning down on Ultron's head.
[Oh Crap]
The AI intoned, and a second later, the digital world around us was no more.
I opened my eyes in the real world, armed with the necessary information. I knew exactly where Ultron was.
Wakanda.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone