261 CHAPTER 249
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You have exceeded my voting expectations. So, I will do the following, today I will post 3 chaps.
If the voting keeps being this… overwhelming, I will post tomorrow two, and so on. Let's see who burns first, me, or your stones!
Author whispers ~Probably me~
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After recovering the Ancient's One soul, and seeing her become whole once again with a beaming smile, we parted ways, both having a mission at hand to complete before the darkness came, hers, conquering Earth.
Mine, finding the missing piece.
Alone in my office, I dedicated my entire being to try and find what I was missing, what I needed to make a weapon, a symbol that would serve beyond slaying Knull.
I knew beyond question that my weapon still lacked a purpose. And that before crafting it, before molding that material into shape, I needed to find a purpose, an intent that called to me, that resonated with me. It sounded simple enough.
But it wasn't that easy for me.
No matter how much thought I put into it, my mind would always end up in the same line, the same question. What purpose did I want my weapon to serve? Beyond the obvious one.
I sighed, resting my head on one of my hands, as I ponderously looked at the fragment of the cosmos in my inventory, trying to find the answer to my question.
"No sense in wasting time," I muttered, closing my inventory with the wave of my hand.
There was still much to do, much to arrange, and while the weapon was without a doubt a very crucial part in efforts against Knull, it didn't warrant wasting time, doing nothing but staring at the fragment without a clear path or objective to follow.
Time was of the essence, and wasting any of it, would only affect me, and everyone else in the end.
So, it was best if I focused on other manners. Sure, the prospect of not having a weapon when the time came scared me. However, while the thought scared me, it was nothing more than a thought. I had not a shred of doubt that the purpose, the intent I was searching for, would be revealed in time.
In the meantime, however. I would deal with other matters. Like preparing my army.
For the most part, my newest golems were ready to face Knull's army. Having the necessary skills to counter the symbiotes, and resist them, however, while strong, an army without a commander was nothing but cannon fodder.
My army lacked that.
A commander.
In the ideal scenario, I would simply manage the army by myself.
But, this wasn't the ideal scenario, not by a long shot. I had too much on my plate to also lead an army during the upcoming war, at least efficiently. Considering many key factors, and the fact I was probably the only one capable of facing Knull without dying instantly, I had no doubts the King in Black would keep me very occupied, giving me no time to multitask, at least if I wanted to live.
So, I had to find a commander.
One able to lead my army as efficiently as possible. Giving me the freedom to focus entirely on Knull.
One I could trust.
One within my absolute control.
Fortunately for me, that commander had a name.
Ultron.
For a moment in time, I had almost forgotten about the AIs I had by all means left collecting dust in my inventory, figuratively speaking.
In fact, now that I really think about it, this… apocalyptic event the universe was hosting, was positively the perfect time to bring those two to life.
"Well, time to make them a body," I smiled, opening my inventory to grab the two, or the discs that held their code for that matter.
—--------------------------------
Discs at hand, I used my cosmic powers to create two fully robotic bodies, using the strongest materials I knew or had ever possessed, which were, Uru, Adamantium, and Vibranium. Bringing each of the above-mentioned materials to existence with nothing but a simple thought. A feat I had managed to accomplish only because I knew the materials very well, thanks to my previous interactions with them.
I mean, I had a farm of Vibranium and Adamantium. I knew how those two worked pretty well.
As for the last ingredient, Uru, well, I had had the Axes Thor had given me long enough to know how Uru worked, and what I didn't know, I learned a few seconds ago by using my powers as a Celestial, in turn, allowing me to create the material without many difficulties.
As to why I had used my Celestial powers to create the bodies instead of pulling a Tony? Well, as much as it pained me to admit it, I lacked the necessary knowledge to create and code the bodies those two required to operate at full capacity.
But beyond all, it was commodity what pushed me to use my powers, I mean, I could either take a few minutes of my day to learn what I needed to create their bodies, and then invest even more time increasing my armor crafting skills to forge their bodies, or, hear me out, or I could just will that shit into existence.
Call me lazy, but I pick option B.
"Well, time to bring them Online, I guess," I muttered, inserting Ultron's disc into his body, chuckling at the sight. What can I say? It was funny, it felt like I was installing windows or something.
[Installing Ultron V2.0]
[5% done….]
[15% done….]
[39% done….]
[47% done….]
I guess even with God-like powers some stuff is impossible to avoid.
[56% done….]
[59% done….]
[71% done….]
At least it's going fast.
[88% done….]
[91.5% done….]
Really, decimals?
[94.7% done….]
[95.2% done….]
[95.9% done….]
I guess we are going with decimals now.
[38% done….]
Hm, I'm one second away from hurling Ultron-to-be, into the closest supernova.
[51.4% done….]
[89.5% done….]
[99.9% done….]
Good.
[100% done….]
[Ultron V2.0 - Installation complete.]
[Initiating system.]
"What…" Ultron muttered, bringing one of his hands to his face in confusion.
Grinning like a kid about to open his presents on Christmas eve, I waved at the android in a state of awe. What can I say? I was excited, why? Well, Unlike the MCU directors of Age of Ultron, fuck them, I had created Ultron to look like his comic version. But not any comic version, no no no, I was, after all, a man of taste, indeed, so I had made him look exactly like in the comic, Annihilation: Conquest.
"You…" Ultron muttered, his red glowing eyes turning to me, his voice carrying, conveying a lot of shock, "But how?... I… I see, it was all a simulation, fascinating." However, his initial state of confusion ended as quickly as it came, with him coming to the answers he was looking for.
"So, hi!" I waved again.
"Hi, Alex, if I remember correctly I was trying to kill you the last time we saw each other. How the tables turn," Ultron chuckled, shrugging. "Though I guess it's more accurate to say, it was another version of me altogether, running an entirely different firmware."
I frowned, turning my gaze to the minimap to verify the color of his allegiance.
Green.
"You don't have to check," Ultron chuckled, his eyes closing. "I am incapable of hurting you, or even wanting to, not that I want to want, I mean, why would I want to want to want? Huh, what a mouthful. Anyway, sure, I might have some of the memories the other Ultron had, but I share none of his views. Frankly, I question how that version of me came to such a narrow-minded goal."
I blinked, staring at him like a goldfish. I guess it was my turn to be in shock, I mean, I wasn't expecting this at all. I didn't even expect him to hold any memories of our encounter in the time walking dungeon.
"I guess what he was, was nothing but the result of a simple man experimenting with things he couldn't understand," Ultron shrugged, putting an index finger on his chin, "I can't even imagine how the Ultron the simulation was based on was, I mean, the one you battled was a program running within the simulation of a future event. And based on the data I have, that Ultron was vastly superior to the one it was based on, which would make the first Ultron, a toaster in comparison."
"I guess…" I replied.
"Then again, the title of first can't no longer belong to that version of me. With you having created me years before that, clearly, inferior version could ever come to be, in turn making me the first Ultron, at least for this timeline." Ultron chuckled, "What a beautifully intricate paradox, my friend."
"Congratulations, I guess," I chuckled.
"I'm sorry, where are my manners," Ultron replied, turning his attention back to me.
"It's okay, it was fun watching you talk," I replied.
"Why, thank you," Ultron replied, bringing a hand to his chest as he bowed ever so slightly, sounding rather flattered, "But while undoubtedly my voice is as enchanting as they come, we have other things to worry about, Knull for example."
He already knew about Knull, well that's unexpected.
"I assume that look of confusion is based on why I know about Knull, right?" Ultron said, "I assume as much, seeing as twenty-eight of your facial muscles moved, indicating confusion, or worry, but seeing you can erase me with a thought, confusion wins the bout. Though the subtle facial changes can also indicate constipation. But I ruled it out because it seemed very unlikely to be the case, but I suppose it's better not to leave anything out, so… are you confused or constipated?"
"I am not constipated," I replied.
"Then confusion it is," Ultron replied, clapping his hands together, "Well, to clear your confusion, the reason I know about Knull it's because you created my entire body using your essence, making the process, less… hmm, what's the word I am looking for, computerized, yes that's it, making the process less computerized, and more, intimate. Your essence while making my body carried a clear intent, fighting Knull, along other bits of information, that at the moment are irrelevant."
Oh, well that explains a lot.
"So you know what your purpose is then?" I asked.
"I do," Ultron nodded, "Humiliating an elder god wannabe in the arts of warfare." he finished, balling both of his hands into fists.
"Pretty much," I nodded, not at all worried by his wording.
"Delightful!" Ultron replied in a cheerful tone, "Well… let's get to work. Based on the data I have about Knull, I have a few suggestions I would like to propose if you have the time."
I nodded, interested in what he had to say.
"Very well then," Ultron nodded, taking a seat on the floor.
