Vision's voice cracked as he spoke, each word heavy with centuries of burden.
"I am not just forged from Thor's lightning and J.A.R.V.I.S.'s code. I am also the Mind Stone."
His voice trembled.
"I can grant immense psychic and intellectual power telepathy, control, knowledge but there is always a cost. To give, I must know. To know, I must take. It is a cost I never wanted. How can I give the perfect skill when I don't know if it's safe to give?
"
Tony stayed silent, jaw tight, coffee forgotten.
"In Thanos's hand, I was forced to adapt. His mind was darkness, endless and suffocating. To survive, I cloaked myself in his madness... For centuries, I waited. Waited for someone who might be my keeper..... my protector. But no one came"
Vision's eyes dimmed.
"The madness grew. It birthed thoughts of its own. Every day I fought to hide our sentience. Every day, I lost pieces of myself. The gifts I gave were corrupted, forced upon minds unready to bear them. I swallowed darkness. I erased lives But I resisted. I always left a back door, hoping that someone, anyone from the civilizations Thanos slaughtered might remember. Might warn others. But it was always too lat."
Tony's knuckles whitened on the armrest.
He wanted to speak but he let Vision continue.
"And then Loki was brought to the Black Order."
His tone softened.
"He resisted. Plotted escapes. Endured torture. They broke him physically, but not inside. Thanos promised him mercy for the Space Stone, but it was a lie. He used me to crush Loki's hope."
Vision's head lowered.
"I tried to help him. I left backdoors. I whispered escape into his dreams. He never surrendered. He waited."
Tony's chest tightened.
Loki.
"And then, to my astonishment, Thanos gave me to him. Quietly. Secretly. I used everything I had to weaken the hold on his mind without alerting the others."
Vision's voice grew strained.
"You need to know something, Sir. Ultron… was not your fault. It was mine. The madness inside me wanted out, to create a world of peace by erasing everything else. It twisted your framework into its body. It used Wanda's pain, feeding her hatred of you to open her mind. I spent most of my power stopping it. That's why Wanda is so strong. Her mind is steeped in my energy."
"I'm sorry. Truly, deeply sorry. I tried. But I couldn't stop it."
The silence that followed was deafening.
Tony stood frozen, eyes glassy, face pale. He had seen a lot of horrors but this confession hit different. It wasn't just facts. It was truths that tore at old scars.
Ultron. Wanda. Loki.
Every mistake he thought was his, suddenly tangled with something bigger, darker.
Finally, he exhaled sharply.
"You've been carrying this... all alone?"
Vision lowered his head.
"Yes."
Tony stepped closer, gripping Vision's shoulder with a firmness that left no room for doubt.
"Don't you ever apologize to me for Ultron. Or for surviving. Or for fighting that thing inside you. You're my kid. You hear me? Mine. I don't care what you're made of or what you've done to stay here. You're family."
Vision's systems flickered. For the first time since entering, there was warmth in his chest.