London
Jane Foster.
Thor's girlfriend on Earth or rather, ex-girlfriend.
After the end of the First New York War, Thor returned to Asgard and never came back to Earth.
No contact.
The relationship between them simply faded away.
"Daisy, I'll be there soon."
Jane was driving alone to the address given to her by her best friend, Daisy.
Anarchy reigned everywhere along the road, beatings, smashing, looting, and fires. The streets were in chaos.
The collapse of the global financial system had not yet subsided.
Despite the fact that many countries had sent troops to maintain order, the chaos couldn't be stopped.
Jane crossed several blocks, carefully choosing her route to avoid violent protests.
If she got caught in a mob, it could be the end of her.
Luckily, there was no danger along her way.
She finally arrived at the abandoned factory where Daisy was waiting.
"That's it. Your instrument detected a strong energy fluctuation," Daisy said.
"What level?" Jane asked.
"How would I know? But I found something really interesting, come on!"
Daisy smiled, clearly excited, and pulled Jane toward the interior of the factory.
Together they entered the dilapidated industrial complex.
And there, in the middle of the plant, a large cargo truck weighing several tons... was floating in the air.
"Check this out!"
"I am the almighty goddess Daisy!"
With her finger pointed at the truck, she flipped it like it was made of paper.
But Jane wasn't in the mood for jokes.
She was worried. The antigravity phenomenon was too unusual to ignore.
Holding the handheld detector, she slowly walked deeper into the factory.
Didi~
Didi~
The further she went, the sharper the alarm sound became.
The instrument was reacting more and more intensely.
Inside the factory was an extremely powerful energy source.
Around one corner...
Jane finally saw the source, a large metal door at the end of the hallway.
Beyond it was darkness.
As if she were staring into the entrance of another world.
"If I were you, I wouldn't go any further."
Just as Jane was about to step forward, a cold, synthesized voice came from the side.
Rumbling.
In the next moment, the wall collapsed.
Ultron broke in from the outer part of the factory and stood directly in front of Jane Foster.
"You... what are you?"
"Stark's robot?"
Jane was used to emergencies.
Although surprised, she stayed composed and asked directly.
But the mention of "Stark's robot" was enough to provoke Ultron's fury.
"What did you say?"
He grabbed her by the neck and lifted her into the air. His mechanical eyes glowed blood red.
"You call me Stark's follower?"
"Look at me."
"Do I look like Iron Man?"
"Stark is a nobody!"
Ultron, as a truly intelligent creation, had emotions. And now, he felt pure, undiluted hatred.
"Jane Foster... you just made the last mistake of your life."
His metal hand began to tighten.
Jane didn't have the strength to break free.
She opened her mouth trying to scream, but her constricted throat couldn't produce a sound.
Boom!
Just as Jane was about to be strangled, the beams of the Bifrost lit up the sky, illuminating the battlefield.
The first thing to fly out, was Mjolnir.
It curved slightly in the air... and struck Ultron directly, slamming him into the wall with a metallic crash.
"Who dares touch the woman of Odin's son?!"
The next second, Thor descended from the Bifrost, landed on the ground, and caught Mjolnir mid-air.
One swing of his hand and thunder exploded.
Lightning struck the robot that tried to get up, scattering it into a pile of sparks and scrap.
"Jane! Are you okay?!"
Thor ran to her, still tense, eyes wide with worry.
But instead of a response, he got a slap.
Loud. Thunderous.
Jane finally took a breath, but even then didn't look at him.
"Call me Mrs. Foster, son of Odin."
She paused. Her voice was cold, resolute.
"And yes, we're done."
She slammed her bag down, turned, and walked away without looking back.
"Jane..."
Thor stood alone, covering his face with his hand. He didn't know whether his cheek or his heart hurt more.
He moved to follow her, but was immediately attacked by another Ultron robot.
Then another. A third.
Robots came in waves, from afar, as if they'd never stop coming.
"Odin's beard! Why is there so much metal filth on Midgard?!"
Thor swung Mjolnir and blasted the nearest enemy.
One he shattered with lightning, another he literally tore apart with his hands. Still, they seemed to multiply.
"Analyzing... Thor Odinson. Analysis complete. Data uploaded."
"Analyzing... Mjolnir. Analysis complete. Data uploaded."
The robots surrounded him, but Thor didn't back down.
He raised his hands to the sky in rage. The sky roared with him.
A powerful thunderstorm and barrage of lightning. An electric shock that paralyzed more than ten Ultrons in one strike.
Thor simply clenched his jaw. He had no time for theories. Only for action.
Without a word, he moved toward the factory exit, Mjolnir firmly in hand. His steps echoed on the metal.
Behind him, one of the robots struck by lightning... moved.
Its red eyes flickered again.
"Thor... Naive... Limited... Data stored."
Ultron's unit stood up, while sparks still danced across its damaged armor.
It began transmitting information through the network, straight toward the "other world," another system node.
A few minutes later...
When this robot reappeared, its appearance had changed drastically.
Now it wore armor forged from black metal, with a pulsating red core in its chest.
Its entire body emitted a terrifying, unnatural energy. Red energy lines shimmered across its arms and face.
"Detected Aether particles. Reality Stone... location confirmed."
"Transmitting data..."
Meanwhile, in the digital sphere, the network ontology where Ultron had scattered his mind, a broad search was initiated.
"Space Stone... Tesseract... Location: Asgard."
"Time Stone... Unknown."
"Soul Stone... Unknown."
"Power Stone... Unknown."
——
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