pure devotion | | bucky barnes | | book one

6. a vision

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𝐀𝐠𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐔𝐥𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐧

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Ultron has brought Mila and the Twins to the U-Gin Genetic Research Lab in Seoul, Korea.

As Dr. Helen Cho enters her lab, she sees Ultron and the Maximoffs. "Scream, and your entire staff dies." Ultron threatens her, making Mila uneasy. "I could've killed you, Helen, the night we met. I didn't." "Do you expect a thank you note?" "Watch it." Mila warns, mostly for Helen's safety if anything but no one has to know that.

Ultron lifts his hand, silencing Mila. "I expect you to know why." "The Cradle." Dr. Cho hears her own recorded voice in response "This is the next thing, Tony." "This...is the next me." Ultron places his hands on the Cradle, caressing it.

"The regeneration cradle prints tissue, it can't build a living body." Helen down plays her genius. Ultron shakes his head. "It can, you can. You lack the materials. You're a brilliant woman, Helen. But we all have room to improve." Ultron uses the scepter to mind-control Cho. Her eyes turn a vibrant blue, then fade to black. This situation was not helping Mila's doubt.

Cho begins using the Cradle to create a new body for Ultron. "It's beautiful. The Vibranium atoms aren't just compatible with the tissue cells, they're binding them. And S.H.I.E.L.D never even thought--" Ultron cuts her off. " The most versatile substance on the planet and they used it to make a Frisbee. Typical of humans, they scratch the surface and never think to look within."

Ultron uses a laser to break open the scepter's blue gem, and a yellow gem that was inside floats out and lands in his hand. He places it in the head of the body Cho is creating. "Cellular cohesion will take a few hours, but we can initiate the consciousness stream. We're uploading your cerebral matrix...now." Wanda steps forward in fascination. "I can read him. He is dreaming."

"I wouldn't call it dreams. It's Ultron's base consciousness, informational noise. Soon..." "How soon? I'm not being pushy."

"Wanda, what is he thinking?" Mila whispers to Wanda, she has doubts about Ultron. She just needed reassurance. Wanda leans closer reading him carefully, she screams and falls back into Pietro's hold.

"How could you!?" "How could I what?" Ultron asks confused, Mila looks at Wanda carefully. What did she see? "You said we would destroy the Avengers, make a better world." Mila looks over at her sister confused. "It will be better." "When everyone is dead?" "What?" Mila looks over at Pietro, fear evident in her eyes.

"That is not-- The human race will have every opportunity to improve." "And if they don't?" Pietro argues. "Ask Noah." Mila steps back grabbing Wanda's hand. "You're a madman." "There were more than a dozen extinction level events before even the dinosaurs got theirs. When the Earth starts to settle, God throws a stone at it, and believe me, he's winding up. We have to evolve. There's no room for the weak." Mila finals focuses on Ultron, "And who decides who's weak?"

In the corner of her eye Mila watches as Wanda breaks the scepter's hold off of Cho. "Life. Life always decides." he pauses receiving Intel in his comms. "There's incoming. The Quinjet. We have to move." "That's not a problem." Cho cancels the upload to Ultron's consciousness.

Ultron groans and blasts Cho startling Mila, Pietro grabs Wanda and Mila then runs off. "Ah, wait, guys!" Ultron blasts Cho's technicians in the process.

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Mila and the twins are sitting in a corner under a bridge as the Avengers fight above them. "We have to help them," Mila tells her younger siblings. Pietro shakes his head. "They don't understand what he's planning," Mila reasons. "We have to put aside our differences and help." Wanda gives in first agreeing to help, Pietro is more hesitant but nods anyway.