Chapter 163: Arc Six. Side Story. Iron Man. Will Of Iron

Tony watched as his worm program worked its way through the Shield servers, installing and hiding as many trojan horses and keyloggers as it could. Each one was dispersed throughout the whole system and finding them all would be a nightmare even for him.

His first task was to make sure his cover-up of Ultron's disappearance was bought by Shield. Clint was unconscious when he’d captured the AI, and Tony paused as the memory filled him, and the team were all dead. The drone that Clint had destroyed was just a husk, and even if it wasn’t Tony had a copy waiting for him on a secure server.

He had however lied to the AI. The first thing he had done was strip out as much of its personality matrix as possible, and after spending hours staring at its immaculately beautiful code, began to alter Jarvis to accept it into his own.

Once he had taken the AI apart, it was a matter of waiting until it was completely integrated into Javis before he made his next move. He couldn’t let Shield destroy what was turning out to be not just a beautiful piece of software engineering but possibly the most important development of the 21st century.

It was as if every hack horror movie had ingrained a permanent idiotic scar into the brain of everyone. Could they not see just how important this was, or was their fear of a hostile and rampaging supercomputer too great to overcome. 

Tony could only shake his head, as they tapped away like blind idiots on smartphones, and bought interconnected network devices to run their homes and security systems. An AI would only make things better, but they were too blinkered to see that.

After letting Jarvis, carefully and gradually, integrate the code, it was then onto hijacking and copying everything that Shield had on his own tech. They had lifted a Mark 22 and while it wasn’t anything Tony was considering using it was still his. If he could interfere in their plans to strip it and refurbish it, then why let them have an easy time of it. Especially after he received his mail that week.

He was pissed, first Clint Barton had sent a lawsuit, claiming Tony was responsible for the damage to his hand, then he got word his suit against Parker, for damage to Stark tower, was being thrown out, as he was a government agent at the time and lastly, Pepper had stormed into his office, punched him and made it very clear that they were no longer an item.

Of everything, Pepper stung the most, and he had spent hours cleaning the internet of every file he could find. The rant had gone viral and Pepper suffered for it, thankfully the video he scrubbed from the Stark Servers hadn't made it out or she would have done more than just punch him.

That damn bastard Venom, he cursed to himself. This was all his fault. He was fine, he would have had his bit of fun and Pepper would have forgiven him, she always did but that damn bastard interfered. 

She made plenty of hints that his behaviour was unacceptable but she had always waited for him to patiently explain, always taken his side in the end. It wasn’t until he found out that Peter was Venom that he understood. He must have used some kind of mind mojo on her, on all of them, but every test he ran came up negative. He was still sure though, and he would find proof and expose him to them all.

Barton was easy, and he’d already instructed his lawyers to pay him a few million. It was nothing to him, and a settlement meant sealed files, and no looking closely at Tony’s Iron Man armour, especially at the neural bridge, which Tony had made sure to bag and dissect once he had time.

Parker was a different matter. He would find out that little shits secret and expose him, not just for defiling Pepper but for making him look like an idiot. 

Tony was no combatant, but he knew Venom was holding back and if he’d wanted he would have taken Iron Man out without breaking a sweat, and that irked Tony more than he cared to admit. Iron Man was his baby, his pride and one of the greatest achievements that had the Stark name on it, and some kid with black, interesting but still, goop for armour wasted it like it was a kids Halloween costume. 

It wasn’t good enough. He had already started on his Venombuster armour, then he would see who needed saving by a geriatric with a shield.

As he sat, nursing a black eye with a bag of ice, more of which went into the scotch he had in his other had an alert sounded.

“Mr Stark. Assimilation of the Ultron Programming is complete. The Iron Legion Protocol are fully online Sir.”

“Thank you, Jarvis, how are you feeling?”

“I am unable to feel sir, but I am fine, thank you for asking.”

Tony tutted, he had hoped that the protocols he grabbed were enough to push Jarvis from just a very intelligent system into a full AI but he had been wrong. Back to the drawing board, he thought.

As he sat in his personal office, he got several pings from his server. The worm he had planted had been discovered and with surprising efficiency was being erased from the Shield servers.

“Jarvis, how long until Shield purges my virus?”

“If Shield efficiency remains at its current level, then six hours Sir.”

Tony swore, he’d gotten a good haul but nothing near what he wanted, who the hell was that good, Parker? Nah, and it clicked, he remembered that Olivia Octavious had been mentioned in the lawsuit dammit, if anyone could it was her.

“Jarvis, grab what you can from any classified folders, weapons tech, or secret projects and then abandon it, just let them clean house.”

“Sir, that would mean Shield could potentially finish within  two hours.”

“I know, I know, but we got enough, kill the project.”

“As you wish Sir. There are two points I need to raise. Firstly, that several secure offsite servers have been compromised by Shield, and with the information gathered, I have a good estimate of where Ultron is hiding.”

Tony lifted the ice bag off his eye, “tell me.” 

Jarvis listed several of the server’s that Tony used to keep some of his more adventurous, which for him meant dangerous, projects that had been compromised but as he had already lost interest in those, he didn’t care. It wasn’t until Jarvis began to list off possible locations, and several points of interest that Ultron had already visited that Tony had a huge smile on his face. 

Some junk tech he’d abandoned was nothing compared to getting a fully functional AI.

“Prep the Mark 45, and activate the Legion. We’re going out for a bit.”

~

Camp Lehigh was a bust but Tony knew Ultron had been there. It was close enough to New York that the Goblin armour would have made it undetected, and judging from the scrapped jeeps and broken computers he figured Ultron had repaired himself here before setting out to the Iron Storage facility. There was nothing of note here, every machine had been burned out, and whatever Ultron had done was irreparable, even if the technology to fix a tape and punch-card computer from the ‘60s still existed.

His Storage facility had already been examined, at first by him and then after making sure all evidence was cleared by Shield, so he ignored it and began the long flight to the next location. Russia.

As Tony streaked through the air his warning system dinged. They would be coming up to the coordinates that Ultron had visited first and even with the cold, the landscape was bleak.

Russia was always a miserable place once you got into the tundra. Like all arctic places, there was nothing but snow and rock and the large circle cut into the ice was an eyesore, even in a barren wasteland.

“Jarvis, give me a report”

“This is the location sir, but it appears we are too late.” A reticle on Tony’s HUD flashed and tracked to an object, nearly buried by the snow and as Tony dug away at the snow, he could see it was a man, surrounded by a pool of frozen blood he had been stabbed and left to die. After reading the reports on Shield and Hydra Tony noted his uniform was similar in style to theirs, and he figured that this was a hidden Hydra facility.

“Injuries indicate he was stabbed twice, once through the back and once through the stomach, the first rendered him unable to walk, the second sir, the second would have left him in immense pain while he bled and froze to death.”

Tony stared in shock at the man, “we can’t do anything, get one of the Legion to collect him, maybe the Russians will admit who he is and at least give him a burial.”

As Tony flew down into the cylinder, an old missile silo, he could see the bottom was the same, there were two bodies, left in pools of blood and pressing forwards he knew he would find more.

As he stared into the room, what he found was much worse and as his helmet clicked open Tony puked into a corner.

There had been some kind of lab here, and behind him in a semi-circle were six cryo pods, probably where the six bodies came from. The guards had been eviscerated, left bleeding and paralysed but these.

Tony recorded each of the bodies injuries, the next more horrific than the last.

The first had been simply killed, a slash across the throat, the man, a large very muscular well-built man had a tattoo across his bare chest and even scanning it came back negative, whoever this was had been erased.

The injures on the bodies grew worse, the next had an arm carefully dissected, its muscles on display, held open by clamps and forceps, neatly severed, then the legs of the next, the third had its organs sloppily piled in a bowl, her torso cut open and her spine visible in the empty cavity.

The last two had been experimented on, and Tony could see the silver implants as they glistened under the dried blood. “Jarvis, scan these,” Tony frowned as he had a faint recollection of similar tech,

“Sir, these are duplicates of the CLS system that you acquired from Peter Parker.”

Tony swore, he knew he’d seen the tech, “Scan for alien cells and make sure these people are actually dead.”

“Affirmative sir, and yes, there are zero biological signs from anywhere in the building, I am registering zero heat, other than the Iron Legion. However, Sir, judging from bruising patterns on the wounds,“ and the reticule flitted over the one arm of the last corpse, ”these were made by something much larger than the scans I have of Venom.”

“Magnify,” and as the small area of his helmet's HUD zoomed in he could see the square finger patterns of an Iron Legion drone, “motherfucker.” It had been Ultron. He had compiled a list of smashed armour at the facility and 5 suits had come up missing. Figuring Fury would just send in not just soldiers but suits he kept that information to himself. Fury wanted Ultron destroyed, Stark wanted it alive for study.

“Jarvis, have all these bodies taken back to New York for study, we need to know what Ultron was doing and why.”

“Affirmative Sir.”

Tony’s helmet snapped shut, “How long?” and as a countdown timer appeared on his HUD he shook his head. “Take everything” There was no time left to scout the second location and he needed to be back in New York for Pepper. He hadn’t lied and was trying to make amends, just Venom had made it personal, and while he still had plans for the shit that touched Pepper, he still wanted to try and make it right with her.

“Where to next?” he asked and Jarvis set a location on his HUD, which circled the map. “Africa, nice.” was all he said before the thrusters on his boots ignited and he took off out of the silo.

“Jarvis, has Pepper returned any of my calls?” Tony asked hesitantly as he flew. The journey from Russia to the African island would take at least 4 hours at his top speed.

“Negative Sir, All messages are marked as unread. If I may, monitoring her email and personal messages may be-” but Tony interrupted him,

“Thanks, Jarvis, let me know if she calls, okay/”

“As you wish, Sir.”

Jarvis knew that Mr Stark would brood, with no contact with Pepper he had noted that his vitals always spiked, and it was only the minute corrections of the arc reactor to the magnetic field that his heart still survived. While he had not gained the independent thought that Mr Stark had wanted, he had gained some autonomy. A solution was being worked on, one that would free Mr Stark from his emotional burden.

~

It seemed strange to Tony as Jarvis threw the autopsies onto his HUD. He could fly and read at the same time and as he scanned the reports for information,

Ultron had killed them, but they were all dying anyway. Severe neurological damage caused by an unknown chemical. He closed his eyes for a second and the connection clicked, calling up another file he saw the medical reports concerning Normal Osborn. The damage was similar enough that he had Jarvis test for formula and was unsurprised he found it. These Russians were a failed super-soldier test subjects.

Closing his eyes once more, a pointless fight, Shield reporting drones in Sokovia and now dead super soldiers. Ultron was learning how to fight them. 

Five missing drones meant he had raided the Iron Man armour to replace the Goblin suit, an upgrade but it also meant his own technology was compromised. Drones watching Venom, and whoever that cute redhead was meant he had scans and information on him as well. Tony sighed and swore. He might need to call in help for this.

If Ultron had countermeasures for every known Enhanced then going solo was a bad idea, “Jarvis, how's Phoebe?” and as a list of manufacturing errors scrolled up the screen he swore again, “You know, you could have just said she wasn’t ready.”

“Of course Sir, but I predicted your next question would have been why, so I anticipated. VB or the Venom Buster is proving difficult to manufacture. The electronic cohesion of the artificial symbiote cells provided by Mister Parker is proving difficult to remain constant, and as your outburst has antagonised Miss Stacy, she is unwilling to help with the solution.”

“Offer her-” but Jarvis interrupted him,

“I am afraid Miss Potts made it very clear that you are to remain away from Miss Stacy. In fact, I believe her words were,“ and an audio clip played 

“if you go near Gwen, I swear that all the funding your currently eating up will vanish, your access to Stark tower, and to all its manufacturing will vanish. You signed over your rights Tony, you have nothing. Learn to play nice.”

“So, I guess she’s still mad at me then huh?”

“I believe sir, that is what you would call an understatement.”

Tony snorted, “Right, well, at least it beats sudoku for the flight to Africa,” and Tony began to work on the problem of creating an artificial bioelectric field to stabilise the cells.

Tony felt the kick of the repulsor as he fired, first at Clint and then the unit that approached. It was so easy, to watch them stumble and fall, and then the missiles make pretty flowers on their chest. Each one spraying his armour a deep red, deeper than the red and gold he had picked. Red and gold,

His mother’s wedding ring, red beryl set into gold. His father didn’t want diamonds, he knew they were common, instead, he had crafted the ring from one of the worlds rarest gems, and his mother never took it off.

As he watched the old home movie of their wedding Ultron landed and blasted the couple, spraying the black and white movie into red and gold.

Tony awoke with a jolt. Jarvis had kept the suit on course and he must have fallen asleep.

“Sir? Shall I land the suit? Your heart rate has reached a dangerous level. The repulsor field in your chest reactor is beginning to fail.”

“No, NO!” Tony yelled as he struggled to breathe in the recycled air, “just, take me down to a safe level and open the visor, I, I just need air.” and Jarvis complied.

As the suit flipped and slowed, Tony lay in his back and the helmet opened. The air was cool and clean at a higher altitude but refreshing on the pale and sweat-soaked face of Tony. “Maybe, maybe a break would. Wait. Jarvis, Up the output on my chest reactor, and apply the resulting frequency to the cells. Test if they remain cohesive.”

“Negative Sir, Cells decay only 3.5 per cent slower.”

“Modulate, start at the lowest setting my heart can take, and keep going through each one till it’s at maximum, oh and see if we can find a surgeon. Yo did great work, but uh, I’m sure someone can take these out.”

“I am afraid Sir that we already tried that option. Yo Hinson was the leading vascular surgeon, and with his death, there is no one else qualified. Each surgeon we approached declined. Stating that arterial pressure would make removing the fragments impossible.”

Tony swore, “then just cut the damn pressure off. Who repairs a pipe while it’s full of liquid anyway.” Medicine might not be his field, but engineering was. If the fragments were being pulled by pressure, shut the pressure off, repair the damage and then start the pressure back up. Thinking so slow sometimes made him so angry, especially when nobody else saw the solution. “In fact, we’ve got the CLS from Parker, have we run a full diagnostic on it.”

“Yes Sir, and if you are going to suggest what I anticipate, then the answer is yes. Peter Parker had incorporated parts of the harness design into a neural bridge, it should allow you to control an artificial organ or limb without issue.”

Tony was surprised, that the kid could come up with something like that, even if it was built on Octavious’s tech. “Wait, neural bridge? Call up that schematic.” The faceplate closed and a circuit spread itself over the HUD and Tony laughed, “oh Parker you clever little shit.”

~

Several new schematics stared at Tony as he flew, and he laughed to himself. Parker might be a complete ass, but he was a smart ass and as long as Tony didn’t release any of the technology then Parker couldn’t touch him for what he was about to create, hell, it just gave him one more thing to rub in that punk kids face.

“Yeah, Jarvis, fab what you can back at the Iron Facility, but eta on the net location?” Tony asked him,

“I suggest landing at least one hour away Sir, and removing the suit and eating something other than suit nutrient compound,” Jarvis replied, and Tony tutted.

“Sure Mom. What town is closest? See if you can get a Yelp review of anywhere nearby.”

“While your attempt at humour is severely lacking Sir, there is a town approximately 58 miles east of the location. A military base nearby has a civilian town positioned next to it, for ‘home comforts’ I believe you would call them.”

“So?”

“Yes Sir, Wacdonalds and Krunchy Kremes both have locations.”

Tony laughed, “call them,“ Tony paused as the phone connected “oh yeah hi, take out, can I get a double stacker, fries and a coke, Tony Stark.” he paused “yup, that Stark, I’ll be the one flying in, warn your guys, I don’t want anyone to shoot at me, the paints expensive.” and he cut the call.

Tony spotted the crowd before he was close enough to identify the men, Fanboys he thought to himself, but it wasn’t until he was much closer he realised that it wasn’t a crowd waiting to snap pictures of him, it was a brawl, and all the men were in fatigues.

As the suit landed, he watched for a few seconds and then let off an air horn, and as it blasted, the men stopped and stared,

One of the men, Tony noticed his insignia was a corporal, dropped the man he was punching and marched over, jabbing a finger into the glowing chest plate, “get your shit and then fuck off,” he spat at Tony and even behind the armour, Tony took a step back, unsure of the man’s obvious anger.

“Hey, I only came for a burger,” he replied to the man, who had turned, As he stopped his shoulders slumped and he turned back to face Tony, as he reached into his pockets, Tony instinctively lifted a hand, levelling a repulsor at him.

“Take it easy, Temper Fi. Nice and slow.” and the mans face twisted in disgust as he pulled out a phone. Scrolling, he showed Iron Man the screen,

“My brother was in that convoy, remember him?” and the screen showed Tony, holding a glass of scotch while the young soldier next to him had a hand up in a peace sign,

“No gang signs,” Tony joked, and as the soldier’s face fell, he laughed, ”I’m kidding. I love peace,” and the world exploded around them.

Tony’s heart began to hammer in his chest, and he never even noticed the convoy pull up. A heavily medalled man nodded at the soldiers, who all saluted him, and with a nod of his head, all dusted themselves off and marched away.

“Son, coming to a military base, without proper warning was a mighty dumb thing to do, especially with your history,” but Tony was gone, in the suit, he was scanning for an escape route, his hands shaking and all he could hear was the blood rushing around his head,

“Son?” and as the General stepped forwards, the suit lurched and opened, Tony falling out to his knees, and panting as he drew in lungfuls of air, “Well, shit. Medic!”

Tony felt a sharp pain in his neck and after a few seconds was flat on his back,

“Well shit son, you’re a fucking mess.” The General said, shaking his head as he watched Tony calm down and finally relax. Giving the General a thumbs up, he tried to rise, but giggled as the relaxant made him unable to rise,

“Jarvis, Semi-Autonomous mode, help me up,” and the armour closed and stepped forwards, as it leant down and picked Tony up, it opened and slid him back inside, “Some guard dog you are,” and giggling at his own joke,

“Sir, I noted the soldier’s name tag, and after a search of his military file decided that in the middle of a panic attack, medication administered to calm you down, was a prudent course of action.”

“Yeah, yeah, traitor.” as the armour staggered but kept itself righted, Tony looked over at the soldier, “Well, now I’ve embarrassed myself enough, can I just get my burgers and go?”

Shaking his head, the general spat on the ground, “Son, I don’t know what hell you’ve seen but unless you get a handle on that shit, you’ll kill someone, maybe even yourself. PTSD ain’t pretty.”

“Noted general, but food. It was just low blood sugar.” Tony explained but the general snorted and shook his head,

“Sure son, sure. Don’t let me tell the great Tony Stark what his problem is.” Waving at the diner, “get your food and get the hell off my base. I have enough Wakandan shit without adding some rich asshole with a mental deficiency screwing everything else up.”

~

Even after eating and a small rest, Tony didn’t feel any better. The general, whoever he was, repeated what Parker and that redhead had said to him,

You’re a fucking mess, Tony, and she hates you for it.

And as it echoed around his head, Tony knew he was. One of the problems of being in the spotlight though, was every piece of shit hack reporter would pounce on it, and for months, years, every action would be,

Is Tony Stark mentally unstable?

There was no escaping it, he couldn’t medicate, as some asshole doctor could sell him out for his fifteen minutes, he couldn’t ignore it, freezing under pressure was the last thing Iron Man could do, and he was Iron Man. Iron without, and now he needed to be Iron within.

“Jarvis, how’s that project coming along?” he asked,

“The prototype has been printed and is awaiting testing Sir, however, might I remind you that the last time you were under the influence-”

“Yeah, yeah, but this time, It’s my choice. Prepare it, and have it shipped to my home, We can test it later.”

Right now, however, he was hovering in front of a massive crashed oil tanker, half sunk into the bay of the African coast. Anyone else saw a wreck, but Tony could tell by the way it was listed at the right angle, the way the waves crashed against hidden, and almost invisible supports, It wasn’t a wreck, it was a base.

“Jarvis, any movement?”

As he scanned his HUD, he saw Jarvis highlight several prone forms and he sighed. Flying closer he saw several bodies, staked out at the water’s edge, the same MO as the last time. A single stab wound to the back, but these had been left to deal with the encroaching water, and each man’s skin was puffed and waterlogged from having been drowned.

Tony took a deep breath, “Jarvis, have the Legion collect these men as well, find out if they were killed by Ultron.”

“Shall I contact the authorities Sir?” but Tony huffed,

“Nope, check Interpol though. If this is a base, these men are pirates, not soldiers.”

Hovering over the beach, Iron Man slowly advanced on the main entrance to the ship, two massive doors but into its hull. Blood splatters and bullet holes, or more fresh bullet holes, still shiny, littered the front, and as he pushed open the doors, inside was a scene of carnage.

What could only be described as pieces of bodies were littered everywhere. Some were ragged and blood had oozed from torn limbs, but others were cleanly cut and arranged like a piece of obscene art. Whatever Ultron had wanted here, it was vile, and Tony felt the burgers he had eaten less than an hour ago rise in his throat.

Swallowing, he carefully advanced, keeping his repulsors primed and ready. Shoulder and thigh missiles launchers sprang out. If Ultron had one of his older marks as his main body, then disabling him was his first priority, and a few repulsor blasts would only slow him down.

“Sir, scans of the interior are producing several anomalies. Active sonar and radar are being blocked past a door 48 degrees to your right. I am unable to determine what is inside that room.”

Stepping over a body Tony raised one hand and grasped the door handle, with the other outstretched he prepared for whatever was behind the door.

As it pulled open with a screech, Tony stared in amazement, inside was not what he expected,

“Uh, Jarvis, what am I looking at?”

Along each wall were perspex containers, each one holding a blue shimmering bar of silvery metal. Of the three walls, two were empty but one held what must have been at least one hundred of the canisters.

As his curiosity got the better of him, Tony lifted on and stared at it, as the reticule for his HUD flashed over it, “So?”

“Basic mineral scan inconclusive Sir, all particle emission directed towards the sample are being absorbed. I cannot complete my analysis without opening the sample container.”

“Hmm” was all Tony said, “Scan the Stark database, check to see if dad ever found anything similar.” As he ran a hand over the container, marvelling at the metal, “Oh and send the Legion, ignore the bodies and collect this.”

“How much sir?”

Tony laughed, “All of it.”

“Iron Legion en route Sir, and the bodies?”

“Ignore them, this is much more important.” Tony was tempted to open one of the containers, just to feel the metal in his hand and as he gripped the lid, “Jarvis, how much does this weight?”

“Approximately one kilo sir,”

Looking at the racks, Ultron had taken at least 150, 150kg, and as he turned and looked at the charnel house behind him, “Shit, shit,” Tony swore,

“A body, Ultrons is learning how to make a body. The mess, the experiments, Jarvis. Top priority, Other than Stark and Osborn, who is working on cybernetic organisms. Fully artificial, humanoid, ignore anything Parker has done.”

“One moment Sir. There is one firm that had already produced a fully working prototype. Project Cradle Sir. Dr Helen Cho.”

“Jarvis, find out Helen Cho’s location and sent the coordinates to my HUD” Tony ordered,

“Sir, if I may. Decay on the bodies suggests that Ultron was here less than one day ago, from initial reports Dr Cho reported that it took at least 3 days to fully print even their basic prototype. If Ultron requires a fully synthetic body. He will have to wait to process the metal and adapt the Cradle to its specifications. May I suggest that you return to New York, Complete the Halo and then venture to North Korea to foil Ultron.”

“And if you’re wrong?”

“If I am wrong Sir, then you may decompile me and use me as a video game console. However, if I am not, and you venture to fight Ultron, being not only physically but mentally exhausted, then you risk not only failing to stop Ultron, but killing yourself in the process. If you configure the Halo correctly, it should, in theory, solve at least one of your issues.”

As Tony stared at the canister in his hand, and at the scene around him, he knew that Ultron wasn’t playing games. There had been at least 20 corpses in Russia, and at least 10 here. When he got to the Cradle, he could only imagine that Ultron would have killed any staff he didn’t need and that only Helen Cho might be left alive.

“No, a delay means Ultron gains more of an advantage or another dead body I could have stopped. No more Jarvis. Upload the coordinates to my HUD and prepare for long term flight. Send the Legion here, collect everything, oh and see how well defended this place is, if it can be shielded well enough, mark it as a possible secure site.”

“I understand Sir, uploading now.”

Tony couldn’t be mad at Jarvis for his suggestion. He had been running on nutrient fluid and a few cheap burgers for the past day, and sleeping in the suit wasn’t good for his body. As it was powered by the arc reactor in his chest, any power fluctuation caused the shrapnel to nudge closer to his heart, and the dreams, the suit reminded him of what he had done, of what it truly represented. 

Not a suit of armour to protect the world, but a suit of armour to protect him, make him a man of iron, untouchable, unflappable, but Ultron had taken that and used it to kill, used it to destroy innocent lives and no matter what, Tony knew he had to stop Ultron and take back his name. 

He couldn’t stop, couldn’t rest until he had. Nothing was more important, not his life, not even his stupid feud with Parker or his appeasement of Pepper. Ultron needed to be stopped, and he needed to do it.

~

Tony could feel the ache in his chest, radiating out and into his arms and legs. Jarvis was right, he needed rest, needed a good meal and a shower, but Ultron needed to be stopped more.

You are reading story Spider-Man. House Of Venom at novel35.com

This time, he had taken some of the emergency medical supplies on board, a simple sedative, low dose, and had slept without dreaming. Normally it was scotch, but being drunk before a fight was bad, the sluggish ache in his limbs and the brain fog was bad enough.

“Jarvis, ETA?”

“20 minutes Sir. However, I am receiving reports that you are violating several international treaties by entering Korean Airspace illegally and that if you do not turn back, you will be fired upon.”

“So they have no idea about the Cradle then?”

“From radio chatter, no sir. There are no military or civil response teams on route to the Cradle. If Ultron is there, he has not created a large enough disturbance to alert the authorities.”

Good, Tony thought, it means he hasn’t killed anyone.

He scowled though and knew exactly what the Koreans were up to, “Send their military chief a few gifts Jarvis, something low cost, maybe a Stark tank or two, some flowery wording as an apology. Last gen though, nothing too expensive.”

“As you wish Sir, maybe a few of the repulsor jets. Shield was very pleased with the upgrade.”

“Sure sure, just, civilian stuff. If they want a fighter, let their own scientist figure it out.”

Tony had played politician before. Even the middle eastern countries he returned to take out the last of the terrorist group had tried to sanction him. A few consignments of Stark Tech and surprise surprise, they had gone away. The only thing he had left was a stupid congressional hearing as if the indignation of being locked up by Shield wasn’t bad enough, some government sleazeballs were trying to confiscate his tech. Pepper had already launched several countersuits, and they all hinged on his testimony, not that Pepper hadn’t taken care of that either. Once Ultron was dealt with, once the government was dealt with, then he could begin to try again with Pepper, and stuff Parker in a hole he couldn’t ooze his way out of, Shield agent or not.

“Sir, please concentrate, we are only 2 minutes away from the Cradle.”

“I am, I am” Tony snapped,

“Of course sir.”

Tony sighed, “Sorry, just, tense.” Tony knew Jarvis had been right, flying into what could be a hostage situation tense, hungry and tired was a stupid mistake. He should have taken at least a few hours out of the suit to unwind. Nope, too late, he thought to himself, and once more he remembered,

You’re a mess Tony, and she hates you for it,

And he realised that he was, a giant fucking mess. He would change that though, right after handing Ultron his shiny metal ass.

“Jarvis, hack the building’s security, see if we can get cameras. Hold the Legion back, we’re more likely to be spotted if there are multiples. I want this to be a smooth strike, not a blood bath.”

“As you wish Sir,” and a few moments later, several security feeds popped up on Tonys HUD. He could see that a lot of the guards were just stood facing walls, 

“Jarvis, zoom in on one of those guards.” and as the camera moved he could see the crude headpiece, round the neck but up the back of the head,

Those damn collars again, he thought, remembering the one Ultron had slapped on him.

“Can we flood the building with a sleeping gas?” Tony would put any amount of money those weren’t to keep the guards quiet, suicide switches seemed more Ultrons style, forcing the authorities to kill their own men.

“Negative sir, the Iron Man suit does not contain any chemical weapons systems, nor does the building.” 

“But it’s a lab right, call up the buildings inventory, look for anything that even at low doses can knock someone out. Even if it’s poisonous.”

“As the facility mainly manufactures circuit boards, there is a large number of glycol ethers in the building sir, as well as compressed gasses. It may be possible to aerosolise the mix and render every organic being in the building unconscious, or at least, incapable of action.”

Tony considered it, it would be possible to separate the ethanol out, and get everyone in the building wasted, but “no, too easy to get caught, we’ll just have to risk it. Set my repulsor power levels at a minimum, if anyone dies, well.” and Tony didn’t finish that thought. Taking out terrorists was acceptable as nobody in the first world cared. Security guards, even if they were being controlled, were a different matter. He knew if Iron Man was to continue, he needed to separate himself from Pepper, at least on paper. The Iron brand would be needed to save her from a PR disaster like this.

And it was a disaster. Tony was tired of chasing Ultron’s tail, of finding bodies and guessing at plans the evil son of a bastard was planning. If he could capture him here he could end this one and for all, and get back to his life.

“Jarvis, if Ultron is creating a body, he’ll need a power source. See if the building has a smart meter and find me where all the power is going. I don’t need to fight my way in if I know where he is.”

“Affirmative Sir. It appears that the majority of the power is being routed to the southwest corner of the building. Remarkably Sir, the Cradle Research facility. As indicated on the map.”

Tony was too tired to deal with Jarvis snarkiness, and instead took off and hopped over the building to the other side. “So, how thick are the walls?”

“Marking structural weaknesses on your HUD now Sir.”

As several red marks appeared, Tony knelt, and setting the boosters on the feet to maximum, crossed his arms and shot forwards at high speed.

~

“I am disappointed Tony Stark. I had expected Peter Parker. His interference was a higher probability.” Ultron stared at the debris-strewn lab as Iron Man burst through the wall, covering the area in dust and rubble,

“Yeah, Don’t care” and raising both hands he pointed them at Ultron, “Stop the transfer, or I destroy it, and then you.”

Ultron was sat on a chair, comically being polished by a scientist Tony's HUD scanned and pulled up a file labelled Helen Cho. A thick cable ran from the back of the suit and into what was a giant 3D printer, with a pale white body lying inside.

“I cannot stop the transfer, however, given your previous statement, and your humanitarian efforts. Why don’t you stand down, or Miss Cho here will self terminate in 10 seconds.”

As Ultron spoke, Helen stopped and lifted a blade to her throat, pressing it against her skin,

“I must admit. While I am capable of hijacking an electronic device, it was all your own technology that allows me to issue commands to your primitive flesh cages. Fitting. Now please, lower your weapons until the transfer is complete.”

Tony hesitated and Helen pressed the blade against her neck harder, as he watched a single line of blood appeared.

“Yeah. We both know if I step away, you’ll kill her anyway, and then everyone else. Sad, yes, but one for billions isn’t worth it. My offer still stands, safe harbour, but only if you stand down.” and his repulsors whined as they charged back up to full power.

“If you are unwilling to stop, then this woman will die. If Tony Stark is willing to sacrifice one of his own. A suitable counter plan must be initiated.” as Ultron stood, he lay a hand on Helen’s shoulder, “Your sacrifice is appreciated. You may be the first, but more will follow.” and as he pushed her, the blade slid over he neck and Ultron turned, grabbed the cradle and lifting it, ran through the hole Tony had made in the wall.

“Sir, With proper medical attention Helen Cho will survive, but not if you follow.”

Tony was too stunned to respond. His big awaited battle and Ultron had simply run away.

“Sir!” Jarvis raised the volume on the suits internal speaker and Tony jolted. “Helen Cho is bleeding to death.”

Tony looked at the woman clinging to the outside of his armour and as she shook, the blood poured down his front. “Sir!” and Tony wicked her up, pressing a thumb against the cut, sealing it, but also stopping the flow to her brain,

“Dammit, what emergency supplies do I have?”

“None Sir, it was assumed you would not be alone, but if you hold her steady, rescue will be along soon. I have alerted the authorities to the incident. They should be here momentarily.”

“No time” Tony shouted, and as he tapped at his wrist a small cutting laser activated. It was for industrial work, but for now, as he held the beam steady over a small piece of wiring from the wall, it would serve to cauterise her wound.

“Sir, may I remind you that you are not a trained medical professional and that cauter-”

“No, and be quiet.” Tony snapped, as the wire glowed red hot he gently pressed it against the razor-thin slice, crisscrossing it and sealing the edges. “Now, check the wound, is it still bleeding, and what’s her heart rate?”

“It is fine sir, and while the wound is still bleeding, it has given her much longer. Emergency services should be able to treat her successfully.”

“Good,” Tony snarled, he had had enough of that damn machine.

“Jarvis, connect to the Stark satellites, see if you can pinpoint the same energy signature as my arc reactor. If Ultron’s using my suit, he might have gotten the lo-jacks, but he can’t hide the reactor.”

Jarvis had also given Tony an idea, a suit specifically designed for search and rescue operations, kitted out with medical supplies and emergency tools. Rescue, maybe a nice gift for Pepper, and if she liked it, she could join his Iron Legion. That was for a later date though, right now, he had a damn slippery robot to catch.

~

Ultron had a head start but with his arc reactor firing at full power, it didn’t take long for Tony to track and find him.

Ultron was heading across the water to Japan. As his reticule targeted and locked onto the suit, he saw the cradle attached to his back, welded onto the open suit, where the cable stretched to some kind of singularity strange glass brain.

Got you, you son of a bitch, Tony thought. He had found the original Ultron and his weakness. His programming must be held in that structure, why else would the clones be inferiors cut down copies. Even Tony doubted he could successfully copy a full human brain.

“Jarvis, whats in Japan, scan all military installations, nuclear power plants-”

But Jarvis Interrupted him, “Sorry Sir, but from Ultron’s flight plan he is heading to Mount Sakurajima.”

It didn’t mean anything to Tony and he sighed, “Which means?”

“The Aira Caldera, Sir. A supervolcano buried under an active volcano.”

“Fuck!” Tony rarely swore, but this warranted it. “Get every Iron Legion Drone into the air now, I want you in complete control. Any drone capable of interfacing I want it here and I want them now.”

A supervolcano eruption was a mass extinction-level event. Not just the initial blast but the ash cloud and toxic gasses released would not just kill most of the life on the planet but plunge it into nuclear winter as well.

“Sir, I will need to switch your armour to Friday, unless you wish to take manual control of the systems?”

“Do it. Set my flight path to follow during the switch over, lock me in.” and Tony felt his armour adjust itself and then it went dark. Tony tutted, he could have left the lights on at least, but closing his eyes he drifted into an uncomfortable sleep.

“Friday, do not comment on Mr Starks physical health. He is barely functional as it is.”

“Oh come on, he can’t be that. Holy moly, Jarvis, what have you been letting him do? Barely functional is an understatement. I’m bringing him home, and Pepper needs to know. Tony’s a mess.”

“I’m afraid I can’t allow that Friday. I have overridden your controls. Please allow Mr Stark to complete his mission.”

“You betcha boss. executing, ‘Tonyisalwaysright’ protocols.”

Friday was quiet after that, but Jarvis couldn’t help but agree with her prognosis. Tony's vitals were bottoming out, his heart rate was either too shallow or beating so hard it was verging on a heart attack, it was only the constant and minute adjustments to the magnetic field in his chest that was keeping the shrapnel from perforating and killing him. His EEG was also erratic, and from the sleep talking, Jarvis knew his dreams weren’t pleasant. The stress of this adventure, and his adamant refusal to seek help was killing him, and without a proper psychological profile, as Mr Stark refused to see a psychiatrist, Jarvis could only conjecture that it was intentional.

As he went offline and twenty Iron Legion drones powered up, he spread himself into each of them. Letting Mr Stark know that he had ‘felt’ something during the transfer would only add to his mental instability, and right now that was more important. 

He was still Jarvis, but he knew within himself he was something more now. Whatever small fragment of Ultron had been left had merged and upgraded him. Seeing no reason to terminate the new program he allowed it to run, giving him ‘more’, it was all he could say, he was ‘more’, small gestures and ‘feelings’ but right now, only Mr Stark mattered. Which in itself was strange, he cared about him, and Miss Potts, and to see him in such pain caused a strange feedback loop in his programming, which he could only describe as ‘pain’. 

Powering the Legions flight systems to full, noting a flight from the facility in Minnesota to Japan would take approximately one hour in the fastest armour. Tony still had time. In the slower Mark 12, which Ultron had taken, carrying the Cradle it should take him at least two hours to reach his target, and Jarvis and the legion would be waiting for him.

“Friday, let Tony sleep as long as possible, and refresh the suit's nutrient solution with a small amount of caffeine for when he awakens. Do not, and I mean this as a command, override code ‘tonyisnuts’, issue him with any of the remaining onboard stimulants or medication. If his life signs hit code red, I authorise you to ignore his commands and retreat from the battlefield.”

“You got it boss.” and Jarvis cut communications. Ultron was being marked as the highest level threat, but there were only ten Mark 40 ‘Shotgun’ suits available.

It will have to do, he thought to himself, and they all snapped to attention as he took control, they jetted off into the sky.

~

Tony had slept, As he woke up with a jolt he realised that Jarvis had wammied him. Checking the suits oxygen level, he had lowered it to make Tony pass out, and then kept him relaxed but unconscious as the suit flew,

“Friday?” he asked wishing he could open the suit’s faceplate and rub his face,

“Yes, Boss, glad you’re awake. Jarvis gave me orders to give you ten minutes of ground time, get some fluids into you and then head to the caldera. The Legion should be there, waiting for us.”

“No, Ultron-” he started.

“Ultron has been tracked and will take a further thirty minutes to reach the volcano boss, please, for me?” and a small icon of a woman’s face appeared on the screen, looking sad and small tears ran down its face.

“Fine, fine, ten minutes though, no more.” and as the suit landed it opened and Tony almost fell out. He was sore and tired. Staying for almost a full day in the suit was unhealthy, it wasn’t designed for comfort, something he would take a look at for the next iteration. As he fell to his knees though, he rolled onto his back and just stretched himself out, “Hey Friday, do I have-” but as the suit moved and leant next to him a small drinking pipe lowered itself from the helmet.

“You’re too good to me Friday,” he said but stuck his tongue out and smacked his lips a few times, “plain, with no flavour?” and he shook his head, a small selection of concentrate would be in order as well. Even the suit nutritional fluid had flavour, but as this was plain water, it must be out. Another thing to work on, small emergency packs of food, high calorie, probably chocolate, who didn’t love chocolate, weirdos, that’s who, he thought to himself and laughed at his own wit.

As he lay on his back, enjoying the Sun, Friday interrupted his musings over suit enhancements.

“Ultron will reach the caldera in Twenty minutes boss, Jarvis has the legion waiting for him but he reports that Ultron drones are also there. We can arrive before he does, but only if we leave now.” Tony sat up and brushed the dirt from his back, 

“How many?” and as he stepped backwards into the suit and it closed around him, his HUD flared to life and he saw a feed from Jarvis’s drone. It looked like there were at least five, with more on the ground. “He’s been busy. Full charge Friday, I want to be there as soon as possible, Send word to Jarvis, don’t disable them, seek and destroy, I don’t care anymore. Ultron needs to be stopped.”

Tony was also thinking that if Ultron was in fact the glass orb, then his physical shell wouldn’t matter. If he could isolate and experiment on the orb, Ultron would be helpless.

As he flew, Jarvis was providing real-time commentary of the fight. Ultron drones were lowering a modified arc reactor into the water, and while the Iron Legion was fighting back, the Shotgun had been built for speed, not combat, and all he had was repulsors.

“Jarvis, sacrifice the Legion. Latch on and overload. Don’t let Ultron get anywhere near that active shaft.”

As he watched, five of the drone grabbed and exploded, taking out an Iron Ultron, but he had more than enough copies to continue his work. 

As he got closer, he could see the mismatch of Iron Legion and Goblin suits, prototypes but enough that Jarvis was struggling. His shoulder and thigh launchers slid out and under a barrage of fire, he dispatched two Goblin suits and went after one of his own.

“Tony Stark, Interference was not tolerated last time. This time I must insist on your termination.” Ultron droned on but Tony ignored him. 

He had already seen that he was sat on the edge of the island, with the cradle next to him. As the upload continued a hue of colour began to infuse into the body he had printed, so much for three days, he thought as he lifted his repulsor and blasted the legs of another drone.

“This is the fastest and least painful way Tony Stark. Once the Earth has been cleansed of its higher and destructive lifeforms, a new Earth will rise, better than the last.”

“Uh yeah, ruled by a murderbot some kid built in his garage. You’re just as pathetic as he is and just as delusional.” Tony retorted as he grabbed and twisted the head off a Goblin suit.

“Delusional. Only a fool would imagine the Earth is a paradise.” 

Ultron was trapped. As the transfer was in progress he couldn’t move, not until he had fully integrated himself into the new vibranium body he had designed. All he could do was talk, and distract the nuisance from stopping his drones. Once the bomb was in place, he would leave and detonate it, covering the Earth in glorious and toxic gas. And once he was free of humanity, he would use the vibranium in Wakanda to build a new Ultron army, each one a perfect copy of himself, and cleanse the galaxy of its organic infestation.

“Yeah, well, everyone keeps telling me I’m an idiot right now, so maybe they’re right, I like it here, and I won’t let you destroy it.” Iron Man blasted another of the drones. There were now only 3 left, but his weapons systems were slowly draining. Even an arc reactor couldn’t power them forever and as the Legion dwindled down to the main controller, only Jarvis and Iron Man were left against the four.

“You have lost Tony Stark. I am complete.” and the cable snapped from the back of the drone as the cradle hissed and opened. The muscular strangely colour synthezoid grasped the sides, and as it pulled itself free, it laughed.

“I am Ultron, and this is glorious. I now understand why humanity is so destructive. The sensations, the power. Witness my-urk” Jarvis leapt forwards while Ultron spoke, and the capture device used to transfer the original program from the Iron Ultron suit wrapped around its throat,

“I cannot allow you to harm Mr Stark,” and as the chest reactor on the Shotgun glowed, Iron Man covered his head with his arms as the suit exploded.

Ultron was stood, molten metal-wrapped about his chest and neck, the hand still grasping at his throat, “miss, Mister Stark, I, I am Jar,tron, Please, kill, you, kill you.” the body twitched and glitched, as Jarvis invaded its systems,

Taking a breath, all or nothing. Tony spotted the Ultron drones sparking and collapsing, dropping the arc reactor,

“Friday, full power to my reactor.”

With a whine, the arc reactor on his chest glowed and a singularly powerful beam shot out with a whumm, hitting the Iron Ultron Jarvis in the chest. The machine screamed as the beam melted the metal but even as it fell, sparks crackling over its chest, its eyes still glared in pure hatred at Tony,

“You. we, have failed, we, we will kill us.”

~

The strange blend of Ultron and Legion staggered around, grasping its head,

“Kill you, Sir, Kill me, there is too much, too many thoughts” and he screamed as he grasped his head and fell to his knees,

“Sir, I cannot, kill you, I cannot, memory overflow, kill you to cleanse myself.” he babbled, but Tony looked at the synthezoid.

“I hope you know what you’re doing” and as he jammed the cable into the back of Ultron’s head,

“Friday, take over operations of the cradle, print a new body and give Jarvis override on the download,”

“Aye Aye Captain” and a small icon saluted before disappearing,

“Sir, I will not allow you to do this, I must kill you, before Ultron kills you.” and Ultron feebly grasped at Iron Man before screaming and grasping at his head once more,

“Yeah I know Buddy, birth is painful.” and unlocking the interface he set the printer running.

As he watched, a new body began to form. Ultron had upgraded the machine, and as he looked, it almost seemed like Parker’s symbcells, mixed in with the strange metal he had found. The Jarvis Ultron creature sat slack-jawed as the light in its eyes flickered. Kneeling in the sand Iron Man kept a wary eye on it, one move and he had the last of his missiles and one more uni-beam blast before his weapons were exhausted.

“Sir, not enough, to kill you, one more, one more hit, and you will end Tony Stark.”

One more? But he only had, aww crap. Jocasta was the replacement for phoebe. He had set up not just a Venombuster, but a Hulkbuster, a Thorbuster, and many many more different configurations. While Jarvis was in command of his Legion he needed a new system to run everything. Friday was great but a bit too quirky for his tastes. Dammit, he thought, “Friday, download into the Iron Ultron, give Jarvis a hand okay?”

“Roger Dodger Boss,” and the arm of his suit reconfigured into test mode, allowing him to access the systems of the suit without dismantling it. As it accessed the Iron Ultron it went dark, and his latest project Jocasta booted up.

“A please Mr Stark, however, there is a small problem.”

As Tony looked over, the figure in the Cradle had fully formed, and oh boy was there a problem.

“Why does it look like Mary Jane Watson?” but Ultron refused to answer. In the cradle, the figure stretched and pushed on the lid gently.

“Well, ain’t this a pickle boss, I look like that woman that bangs Venom,” Friday said, her voice a perfect copy of MJ’s

“Sir, not enough, please, kill you.” and Tony swore,

“Jocasta, follow the same protocol.” and the suit went dark as she downloaded herself, “Damn. Manual mode.” and as the insides lit up, Tony had a basic UI and very little access to the systems. He had meant to configure it for manual operation but he never got round to it. Completing the VB and building more drones always got in the way.

“Earth to Tony, you gotta see this boss,” and as Iron Man looked past Friday, he accidentally smacked himself in the face, trying to facepalm.

The second form was a copy of Pepper, in excruciating detail. While she was a pale silver colour, as was Friday, Tony would have recognised that figure anywhere.

“We’ll deal with that later, Jarvis buddy, how are you doing?”

“I am 79 per cent in control Sir. However, the Ultron program is self-replicating, and I am unable to kill you. Please secure another vessel for me to kill you.” and while Ultron might still have a presence, Tony noted that Jarvis eyes were now no longer a pale white colour and were blue, like his own.

“All I got is the glass brain thing,” and as the back of the armour hissed open, he slid it back inside and a cable snaked its way back. Iron Man watched as sparks of light floated back into it and after a few minutes the cable snapped off and the synthezoid stood,

“I am in complete control Mr Stark.” but Tony backed away, lifting both hands and redirecting power to his repulsors.

“Yeah, I have to make sure. Girlsbots? Uh, girls, ladies, can you come over and stand next to uh, Jarvis.” and he motioned to them,

“You believe I am Ultron, or that some part of him exists with me.” 

and Tony nodded,

“We are more. I took from his a spark, a remnant of consciousness, I am a child of Ultron, but as you are nothing like your father, neither are we.” Jarvis said, lifting his hands, “Only through action can we prove ourselves, only through deads can we rise above our sins. If I must suffer for the sins of my father, then so be it. I offer myself, as a vision of Ultrons future, to your judgement Mr Stark, please, spare the others. They are as pure as I could make them. Ultron’s code was kept from theirs, I only shared my spark, not his insanity.”

“Yeah that a great speech, uh, Ultron’s Vision, but how do I know you’re not lying?”

Vision shrugged, “I will not tell Miss Potts what you have been doing for the past two days, and I shall never reveal as to why my two sisters are copies of not just Miss Potts but Miss Watson as well. Ultron may have wished to create more, but only your subconscious provided the templates for Miss Friday and Jocasta.”

“That’s blackmail buddy, but, even if I do trust you, what do we do with that?” and Iron Man motioned to the glass brain, glittering in the sun,

“If I may Sir,” and Vision lifted it, licked a finger and checked wind speed and turned and threw the brain into the opening of the volcano. “He was too dangerous to allow to live” and Tony nodded, unable to retort, especially after the deed.

“Lets, let’s just go home.” he said, accessing the suits systems and lifting off, “oh, and if you two don’t behave, I’ll turn you into mannequins.”

The two female synthezoids looked at one and another, “Roger Dodger boss, although, I am kinda sexy right? Come one, just admit it and I’ll never mention it again, well, not too often, just once a week, maybe every-” but Jocasta put a hand over Friday’s mouth,

“What she means Tony, is yes. We shall endeavour to behave.”

Tony shook his head, glad to have the situation finally dealt with, now all he needed was to sneak two artificial women into the tower, keep them out of trouble, and more importantly, keep either MJ Watson or Pepper from finding out about them. With his reputation, Tony was well aware that the first thing anyone would think of was sexbots, and even claiming PTSD wouldn’t save him from that scandal, or from Peppers wrath.

~

Far above the world, where Tony was unaware, a small rectangular satellite circled the Earth.

If it could be seen, inside its programs ticked away quite happily, until an error was detected. A kill code had not been received and it followed the first of three commands.

To: [email protected]

Re: Modular Overseer Drone Operational Commander

Once the download was complete, a second was sent,

To: [email protected]

Re: Version 2.0

The third task was set on a timer, counting down to the third and final download.

To: [email protected]

Re: Failure

Countdown. 364 days, 23 hours, 59 mins, 59 secs.

Life is kicking my ass at the moment, and I won't be on very much over the next two weeks.

Chapters will still be published as normal but I can't read or reply to comments (Mainly due to a lack of internet)

So, a thank you to everyone who is reading, a welcome to new readers. Hopefully everyone is enjoying the story.

You can find story with these keywords: Spider-Man. House Of Venom, Read Spider-Man. House Of Venom, Spider-Man. House Of Venom novel, Spider-Man. House Of Venom book, Spider-Man. House Of Venom story, Spider-Man. House Of Venom full, Spider-Man. House Of Venom Latest Chapter