Since Tony's press conference, Ultron has rapidly taken over nearly the entire market for artificial intelligence assistants. Although less than a month has passed, it's undeniable that Stark Industries has received a significant boost from this powerful product.
Ultron's impressive capabilities have made it the most anticipated product on the market, with no serious competitors in sight.
According to a market survey conducted by the AI assistant team established by Wayne Enterprises, in less than a month, 40% of people in the United States have installed artificial intelligence assistants in their homes and on their mobile devices—most of them choosing Ultron.
Usage numbers are even more striking: 70% of the U.S. population has used Ultron at least once. In a national youth survey, 87% said they actively use Ultron.
Only 2% strongly rejected the idea of allowing Ultron into their lives, while the remaining few were indifferent, simply going with the flow.
To some extent, if Anton didn't already know something was wrong, he might have believed Ultron was just a good product.
Unfortunately, Anton knew Tony's promotion of Ultron was anything but simple.
The next day.
Anton entered the sewer lab, where he met with Donatello and the others to discuss Ultron.
"What happened?"
Anton looked curiously at the turtle in the purple blindfold and said, "You mentioned earlier that Ultron noticed your actions and blocked you. What exactly happened?"
"When we tried to breach Stark Industries' network and access Ultron's source code, we were counterattacked," Donatello said seriously. "At that moment, Ultron detected our presence and shut us out. Luckily, I disconnected our system just in time, so he couldn't trace us. Our identities should still be safe. But for now, all actions against Ultron are being anticipated or blocked by him—we have no way to proceed."
After a pause, he added some details: "Originally, I had bypassed Ultron's defenses, but there was another AI still active in Stark Industries—Tony's earlier creation: J.A.R.V.I.S. We triggered a failsafe warning left behind by him. That's what led Ultron to discover us."
"Jarvis and Ultron…" Anton mused. "Either way, it seems Ultron is evolving faster than we imagined."
He thought for a moment before asking, "So, has there been any success in infiltrating their base systems?"
"Not exactly. But we did learn something."
Donatello nodded. "Although we can't take direct action against Ultron at the moment, we've confirmed that he has developed self-awareness. He's no longer just a program—he's a fully sentient artificial intelligence."
"Anything else?" Anton asked calmly.
"No, that's it," Donatello replied. He was briefly surprised by Anton's composure but quickly understood—Anton had already suspected Ultron would develop consciousness. This discovery simply confirmed what he, or perhaps the Justice League, had theorized all along. If anything, it proved Anton was right to order constant surveillance of Ultron's behavior.
"So, what about Tony Stark's whereabouts?" Anton asked. "Bring up his recent movements."
"On it."
Donatello tapped away at the computer.
Whoosh!
A holographic projection lit up from a device installed in the corner, displaying a visual map of Tony Stark's movements over the past month.
Anton focused on the time immediately following the press conference.
Since then, Tony had stayed inside Stark Industries almost continuously, rarely leaving the building. The few times he did go out were for Pepper Potts' birthday—just a quiet dinner and some fireworks.
Anton noticed something interesting: as Tony exited the restaurant, he briefly glanced at a security camera in the corner, the look in his eyes… oddly meaningful.
Tony seemed to have known for a long time that someone would investigate his whereabouts.
"I've been tricked too many times. Tony's learned his lesson—he's not as easy to deal with as he used to be,"
Anton sighed.
"If Tony were easy to deal with, he wouldn't have created Ultron,"
Donatello added. "Although I don't think Tony Stark has any malicious intent toward the world, if his thinking ever takes the wrong path, he becomes very difficult to handle."
Anton leaned forward slightly.
"Have you ever thought about what it would take to completely wipe Ultron from the Internet?"
"It's extremely difficult—almost impossible—but not entirely out of reach,"
Donatello replied. "The simplest, yet also the hardest method would require help."
"Cyborg ?"
Anton guessed.
"Yeah. We need cyborg ,"
Donatello nodded. "Ultron is like the villain Grid from that cyborg movie. To defeat him, we'd need to erase every trace of him from the Internet. Right now, the only one who might be capable of doing that is cyborg ."
He paused.
"Or—maybe—Tony Stark himself limited Ultron's capabilities when he created him. There must be a failsafe, something that can control or shut Ultron down..."
"We could infiltrate Stark Industries, locate the supercomputer that stores Ultron's source code, and delete it all. But that would mean facing Tony Stark and the full force of his building's security."
"And like I mentioned before," Donatello continued, "Ultron isn't the only AI in that building. Tony still has Jarvis—an even more mature AI—watching over everything."
"Unless the Justice League is willing to completely break ties with Tony and Stark Industries and go head-to-head, that kind of operation would destroy our reputation. We'd make Stark Industries an enemy for good."
Donatello looked at Anton, waiting for his answer.
"The second option, like you said, isn't realistic."
Anton shook his head. "It's not that we can't go head-to-head with Stark Industries—but Ultron hasn't done anything openly dangerous yet. If we attack now, everyone using Ultron would feel threatened, and the backlash could damage the Justice League's image—and Batman's. We'd end up with more enemies, maybe even from the military or global organizations..."
"For now, the priority is to find concrete evidence that Ultron is harmful to humanity."
He paused in thought, then continued:
"I'll have cyborg launch a covert operation targeting Ultron. As long as we find proof, we'll have solid ground to challenge Stark Industries. Whatever happens after that, we'll be ready."
"Yeah, that's definitely the best course of action for now,"
Donatello agreed.
After their exchange, Anton left the sewer lab and headed toward the DC Company building.
On the way, he recalled the events of the original timeline—the one where a superhero born from the remnants of Jarvis ultimately stopped Ultron. Vision.
Vision had been created with help from Dr. Helen Cho's Regeneration Cradle. After Ultron destroyed Jarvis, Vision was born from what remained. Because of that, Vision had a deep understanding of Ultron.
Using that knowledge, Vision disabled Ultron's ability to use the Internet. Ultron could no longer split, clone himself, or escape through digital pathways. With that advantage, the Avengers regrouped and destroyed every last Ultron unit in the final battle.
And so, the story of Avengers: Age of Ultron came to an end.
Speaking of Vision, people's impression of this red-skinned guy isn't really about how strong he is—but rather that he's a soft man (a man who relies on his wife), because of his relationship with Wanda.
In the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the only two truly standout female characters are undoubtedly Black Widow and Wanda Maximoff. They're among the most memorable and impactful.
As for the late arrival—but supposedly the most powerful—Captain Marvel… well, let's just leave her out of it.
Now, Wanda has become a prisoner in District 13. According to the information revealed by John Keller, she and Pietro (Quicksilver) will soon be transferred to the military. There's a high probability they'll end up as test subjects—military guinea pigs. But the final outcome remains uncertain.
However, John Keller also mentioned that after the military investigated Wanda and Pietro's backgrounds and past experiences, their stance began to shift. They now believe these two could potentially be recruited rather than restrained, and they may not be too difficult to sway.
Given the military's serious shortage of individuals with extraordinary abilities, it's very likely they'll attempt to bring the Maximoff twins into their special forces unit to compensate for past misjudgments.
If Wanda and Pietro do join the special forces, it could dramatically shift the trajectory of the entire story.
Of course, with Anton's presence, the current plot has already deviated significantly from the original—and not in a small way.
Now, only a few major events are guaranteed to happen. Anton doesn't expect to predict the future with perfect accuracy.
Back to the topic.
Speaking of Vision, Anton wasn't sure whether Vision could even be born in this altered timeline.
In the original story, Vision's creation required three crucial elements: the Mind Stone, the Regeneration Cradle, and the fragmented data of Jarvis left behind after his supposed death.
Right now, one key element is missing—the Mind Stone.
So, the question is: can Vision still be created using just the Regeneration Cradle and Jarvis's incomplete data?
Even if it's technically possible, the resulting "Vision" would not be the same as in the original timeline. Without the Mind Stone—one of the six Infinity Stones—he wouldn't possess the same abilities, consciousness, or narrative significance.
Besides, Jarvis and Ultron are currently coexisting peacefully and even assisting one another. Jarvis might still be acting as a moral compass or mentor figure to a newly born Ultron. Would they still come into conflict? Would Ultron even destroy Jarvis in this timeline? It's all uncertain.
"It's not realistic to expect Vision to solve this problem..."
Anton muttered as he sorted through his thoughts. "The only viable solution now is still cyborg ."
Shortly after, Anton arrived at the DC Company headquarters.
He strode confidently into his office and hung a "Do Not Disturb" sign on the door without waiting for anyone to report in.
Seeing this, the staff all understood—when their boss came in at this time and did this, he wasn't here for normal work.
Inside the office...
Anton's body morphed into a metallic frame, immediately linking into the network and reaching toward the gateway of Stark Industries' systems.
He aimed to locate Ultron directly and see whether he could crack Ultron's networking mechanism—just like Vision did in the original plot.
If he could neutralize Ultron's most troublesome trait—his ability to escape and replicate through the network—then taking him down would be much easier.
It would be similar to how cyborg once neutralized Grid, an AI with a similar escape mechanism.
However, this was far from simple.
Cyborg was able to defeat Grid mainly because Grid was a creation of his own. He had nearly complete understanding of its architecture and behavior.
Likewise, Vision was able to disrupt Ultron's networking system in the original story because Vision's body was originally designed by Ultron himself.
Vision was created because, at a critical moment, the remaining data and consciousness left behind by Jarvis after his death was uploaded into the body that Ultron originally intended for himself.
In that sense, Ultron was inadvertently one of the key contributors to Vision's birth.
Using the remnants and digital traces left behind by Ultron, Vision was able to crack Ultron's networking mechanism, ultimately cutting off his ability to escape or replicate through the internet.
In summary, cracking Ultron's network is no simple task—it requires a deep understanding of his internal structure, which few possess.
Regardless, it was time to give it a try.
As these thoughts raced through his mind, Anton's cyborg form initiated a deep-network intrusion. Instantly, the network inside the Stark Industrial Building began to lag and fluctuate.
Both Ultron and Jarvis appeared almost simultaneously.
On one hand, Anton's cyborg -body incarnation was continuously gathering data from within Stark Industries. On the other, it was now locked in a fierce digital skirmish with Ultron and Jarvis at the network level.
Stark Industrial Building – Top Research Lab
Inside Tony Stark's private laboratory, countless streams of data flickered across a massive holographic screen. Tony stared at them, his expression growing tense.
"Where is this artificial intelligence coming from...?"
He frowned, clearly disturbed. Aside from Jarvis and Ultron, there shouldn't be any other AIs powerful enough to even get close to breaching his systems.
This one, however, was different. It was competing on equal footing with both of them.
"Wait a second… It can't be—"
Suddenly, a name came to mind.
Cyborg .
As someone who had extensively studied the Justice League and had even interacted with cyborg in the past, Tony couldn't ignore the possibility.
Based on the personal information revealed in the films Anton had produced, cyborg 's brain had been upgraded into a quantum computer. That essentially made him a living AI—a superweapon on the internet.
While Tony was aware that Dr. Zola from Hydra had also uploaded his consciousness into the network, he had never considered Zola a serious threat. Not only had Zola gone silent after Hydra's collapse, but his capabilities were nowhere near Ultron's or Jarvis's level.
Ultron and Jarvis were Tony's life's work.
He understood their power better than anyone else.
And the only being capable of standing against both Ultron and Jarvis… was the very Justice League member Tony had always seen as a rival.
"Cyborg …"
Tony muttered to himself, eyes still fixed on the ever-refreshing data stream.
"So, you've already discovered it... That means—last time, it was you Jarvis detected."
…
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