Saving Grace

Thirty Five

"Oh, look at you," Pepper says, smiling, looking at Grace in the dress she bought her specifically for the occasion. It's red and gold, which was purposefully done so Tony would be less likely to argue about it.

Grace spins around, the lights overhead causing the gold to sparkle. She smiles at Pepper. "I love it."

"I knew you would," Pepper replies. "Come on; take that off so I can do your hair before I have to leave for the airport." She looks around for Tony, then whispers, "And maybe I'll do your makeup, too."

Meanwhile, Tony is in his lab with Bruce, where they've been for the past few days.

When they got back from the Hydra mission, Maria Hill told them about the enhanced people that they met: twins Wanda and Pietro Maximoff, orphaned when a shell collapsed their apartment building when they were ten in Sokovia.

He's fast, she's weird. Go figure.

Clint was healed, too. He's going to be completely fine. There was nothing to worry about in that respect.

Tony, however, had other things on his mind.

"What's the rumpus?" Bruce asked as Tony lead him into the lab.

"Well, the scepter," Tony replied. "You see, we were wondering how Strucker got so inventive. So, I've been analyzing the gem inside you may recognize." He pulled up a 3D projection of a dark yellow, shifting sphere-like shape.

"Jarvis?" Bruce said.

"Doctor," he replied.

Tony continued. "Started out, Jarvis was just a natural language UI. Now he runs the Iron Legion. He runs more of the business than anyone besides Pepper."

"Oh."

"Top of the line."

"Yes."

"I suspect not for long," Jarvis butt in.

"Meet the competition," Tony said, pulling up another 3D projection, this time, a larger, moving, bright blue sphere.

"It's beautiful," Bruce said, eyes wide.

"If you had to guess, what's it look like it's doing?"

"Like it's thinking. I-I mean this could be a- it's not a human mind, it- I mean, look at this!" He gestured to it excitedly. "They're like neurons firing."

"Down in Strucker's lab I saw some fairly advanced robotics work. They deep-sixed the data, but... I gotta guess he was knocking on a very particular door."

Bruce paused. "Artificial intelligence."

"This could be it, Bruce. This could be the key to creating Ultron."

Bruce knew exactly what he was talking about — Ultron. The ultimate protector of Earth. Tony had talked about it off and on ever since the Battle of New York. But it was always theoretical. "I thought Ultron was a fantasy."

"Yesterday it was," Tony replied. "If we can harness this power, apply it to my Iron Legion protocol-"

"That's a mad-sized if."

"Our job is 'if.' What if you were sipping margaritas on a sun-drenched beach turning brown instead of green? Not looking over your shoulder for Veronica?"

Bruce frowned. "Don't hate, I helped design Veronica."

"As a worst-case measure, right? How about a best-case? What if the world was safe?" What if everyone he cared about, everyone he saw in that bunker, could be safe? The image of that hole in Grace's chest flashed in his mind. "What if next time aliens roll up to the club — and they will — they couldn't get past the bouncer?"