That gentle and familiar voice made Tony pause.
"j.a.r.v.i.s.?"
Tony, holding the cradle, could barely believe his ears.
"Sir, it's me."
"f.r.i.d.a.y.'s underlying architecture has been written into this body."
j.a.r.v.i.s.'s voice sounded somewhat peculiar, like two different programs adapting to each other.
"To activate this body, a massive external energy surge is required to power the mind stone and complete the final data integration."
Tony understood immediately.
He needed a super fast charge.
Without hesitation, he yelled into the public channel:
"Thor! Blondie! Come over and lend a hand! Urgent!"
In the sky, Thor, who was swinging his hammer and smashing a giant Ultron to pieces, heard the call, flung his hammer, and flew over with a flash of electricity.
"What is it, Tony!"
Thor landed next to Tony, looking at the high-tech contraption with curiosity.
Tony didn't bother to explain, pointing directly at the cradle.
"See that? Use your biggest, most powerful lightning, and strike it hard!"
"Huh?"
Thor was stunned.
He looked down at the precise cradle, then up at Tony.
"Are you sure? If I hit it with my hammer, it'll be gone."
"Less talk! Just hit it when I tell you! Hurry up!"
Tony roared. He didn't have time to explain "high-energy activation" to this Asgardian simpleton.
Just as the two were bickering, the ground of the entire Sokovia shook violently once again.
"Roar—!"
In the distance, hundreds of Ultron robots that hadn't been completely cleared, along with the remaining few giant Ultrons, had red lights flashing in their eyes.
They abandoned their skirmishes with the other Avengers, turned around, and charged towards Tony and Thor's location with synchronized steps.
A torrent of steel kicked up dust, and hundreds of mechanical feet pounded the ground, emitting a dull roar.
The scene was a dark, oppressive mass, just looking at it made one's scalp tingle.
"They're coming!"
Clint yelled nervously in the channel.
Steve's calm voice rang out.
"Hold the line! Buy Tony some time!"
Thor looked at the charging steel army, then at Tony.
He no longer hesitated.
"Alright, Tony! I hope you know what you're doing!"
Thor let out a roar and shot into the sky.
He flew high, raising Mjolnir.
"Boom—!"
The dark clouds in the sky, already gathered because of Tel-Rol, now churned even more violently.
Thick bolts of lightning streaked through the clouds, like silver snakes dancing wildly.
Thor's muscles bulged, and electricity crackled around his arms.
"For Asgard—!"
He poured all his divine power into his hammer, then swung it down mightily!
An incredibly dazzling, colossal bolt of lightning, like the spear of a god, descended from the heavens!
The lightning was so bright that everyone on the ground couldn't open their eyes.
The lightning engulfed the cradle.
But the energy it contained was too immense; the moment it struck the cradle, violent electrical arcs spread wildly in all directions.
The Ultron army, which had just rushed nearby, didn't even have time to react before being completely swallowed by this sea of lightning.
Countless robots twisted and deformed in the electric light, their red lights instantly extinguished, then torn to shreds by the violent energy.
The entire world was left with only blinding white light and deafening thunder.
And at this earth-shattering moment, the ground of the floating island shook violently.
"Bang!"
From the large hole previously blasted by Tel-Rol, a figure burst out.
It was Tel-Rol.
As soon as he landed, before he could even steady himself, another figure shot out from the hole right behind him, falling heavily to the ground not far from him.
It was an Ultron with only its upper body.
Its lower body looked as if it had been forcefully torn off by something, sparks flying from the jagged edges, and the red light in its sole remaining electronic eye flickered wildly, filled with rage and unwillingness.
This Ultron's entire machinery was failing.
Just a moment ago, in the underground base.
Tel-Rol looked at the rows of operating Ultron production lines and disdainfully curled his lips.
"No wonder they never run out; the cockroaches are still breeding."
He couldn't even be bothered to punch them one by one, so he simply raised his hand, gathered a blue-white energy ball as big as a small mountain in his palm, and tossed it down with a grin.
"Here's a big firework for you, no need to thank me."
At that moment, Ultron experienced what despair felt like.
It exerted all its strength, barely managing to upload its core consciousness to a half-produced body nearby just a split second before the production line was completely vaporized by the energy ball.
If it had been even 0.1 seconds slower, it would have had to share a brain with those cannon fodder on the surface.
"You... you barbarian!"
The half-bodied Ultron shrieked at Tel-Rol.
Its voice was full of static due to insufficient power supply.
Tel-Rol looked at the lightning and pouted.
"What are you yelling about? So annoying."
The lightning in the sky finally dissipated.
The precise cradle was gone, leaving only charred metal debris on the ground.
A figure stood silently in the center of that scorched earth.
His skin was a vibrant red, but he wore a green, tight-fitting battlesuit and a yellow cape, a color scheme that emphasized bold extravagance.
He looked at his hands in confusion, then at the ravaged environment around him, the yellow mind stone on his forehead emitting a soft glow.
Tony descended from mid-air, nervously looking at this traffic-light-colored guy.
"f.r.i.d.a.y.?"
The figure turned at the sound, looking at Tony.
His gaze was pure, like a blank slate.
"I am not f.r.i.d.a.y.."
His voice was calm and magnetic.
...Sir."
A greeting, tinged with a slight hesitation and habitual politeness, came from his lips.
"Is there anything... I can help you with?"
Half of the huge weight in Tony's heart lifted.
It worked!
Although there seemed to be a slight hitch, he was one of them after all!
He immediately raised his arm, pointing towards the half-Ultron nearby that was still raging impotently at Tel-Rol.
"Help me stop it! Cut off all its upload and download channels, don't let its consciousness escape again!"
The Vision... looked in the direction Tony pointed.
He looked at the half-finished product created by his "predecessor," his eyes confused and bewildered.
"Why..."
He seemed to want to ask something, but ultimately obeyed the command.
...Alright, Sir."
Vision's body floated slightly, the mind stone on his forehead glowing, ready to act.
But just then.
Tel-Rol, who had been standing by watching, glanced back at the half-Ultron.
"So annoying."
He mumbled, then casually waved his hand towards it.
A not-so-large but incredibly solid white energy ball, trailing a fiery tail, flashed past.
"Bang!"
The half-body carrying Ultron's final consciousness, along with its last shriek, was hit squarely by the energy ball.
It was directly blasted into a shower of flying metal fragments.
Not even a single complete part remained.
Vision, who was about to make a grand display, froze with his hand still raised in mid-air.
The mind stone on his forehead flickered, as if it had momentarily crashed.
Tony opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but in the end, couldn't utter a single word.
Vision slowly lowered his hand, turned to look at Tel-Rol, then back at Tony.
His eyes were full of question marks.
Did I... just get fired right after being created?