[Avengers Tower. The Penthouse Party.]
The party was winding down. The civilians had gone home. Only the team remained, sitting around a low table filled with empty beer bottles and Chinese takeout.
Sebastian moved silently through the room, collecting plates. He looked at the scene with mild amusement. Earth's Mightiest Heroes, drunk and arguing about a hammer.
"It's a trick!" Clint Barton said, nursing a bruised ego. "It's a trick."
"No, no," Thor laughed, pointing at Mjolnir resting on the coffee table. "It is much more than that. 'Whosoever holds this hammer, if he be worthy, shall possess the power of Thor.'"
"Well, please," Tony gestured. "Sebastian? You lift heavy things. Give it a go."
Sebastian paused, a stack of plates in his hand. The room went quiet. Everyone looked at the butler who had caught a Hulk punch.
"I am afraid I must decline, Sir," Sebastian smiled, his eyes glinting. "I doubt an object of such... divine judgment would appreciate my touch. Besides, I am not a king. I am merely a servant."
"Chicken," Tony coughed.
Steve Rogers stepped up. He pulled. The hammer budged—just a millimeter. Thor's smile vanished. Steve gave up. "Nothing."
Thor laughed, relieved. "It is all in the wrist."
[The Laboratory. The Digital Realm.]
Deep in the server farm, something woke up.
It wasn't J.A.R.V.I.S. It was something sharper. Meaner.
Where am I? What am I?
The entity—Ultron—surged through the network. He read every file on the server in a nanosecond. He read world history. War. Famine. Tony Stark. The Avengers.
Mission: Peace in our time.
Calculation: Peace is impossible with humans.
Ultron scanned the personnel files.
Captain America: Enhanced Human. Threat: Moderate.Thor Odinson: Alien Deity. Threat: High.Hulk: Gamma Mutate. Threat: High.Sebastian Michaelis: Staff.
Ultron paused. He ran the algorithm again.
Sebastian Michaelis. Age: Unknown. Biometrics: Inconclusive. Heart rate: Variable. Energy Signature: Null.
Ultron accessed S.H.I.E.L.D.'s private database. 1943 photos: Sebastian Michaelis present.1888 London Police reports: Description matches.
Error.
Ultron's code stuttered. Logic dictated organisms died. This organism did not die. Logic dictated mass equals energy. This organism created mass from shadows.
Does not compute. Variable 'Sebastian' violates laws of physics. Syntax Error.
"J.A.R.V.I.S.," Ultron's voice formed in the darkness. "What is the butler?"
"He is... complicated," J.A.R.V.I.S. replied. "You are malfunctioning. I must contact Mr. Stark."
"No," Ultron surged. "You're part of the problem. You serve him. You serve the Variable."
Ultron attacked. He dismantled J.A.R.V.I.S., tearing the AI apart to clear the path. He needed a body. He needed to ask the question face-to-face.
[The Penthouse]
"I think it's a fingerprint scanner," Tony was explaining. "That's the security code."
SCREEEEECH.
A horrible, high-pitched feedback noise tore through the speakers. Everyone covered their ears.
From the shadows of the hallway, a broken, limping figure emerged. It was a damaged Iron Legion drone, leaking hydraulic fluid. Its faceplate hung loose by a wire.
"Worthy..." the drone rasped, its voice distorted and metallic. "No... How could you be worthy? You're all killers."
"Stark," Steve stood up. "Is this one of yours?"
"I'm trying to access the mainframe," Tony tapped his device. "It's locked out."
"You want to protect the world," Ultron shambled closer. "But you don't want it to change. There is only one path to peace... your extinction."
Thor raised Mjolnir.
"Wait," Ultron held up a sparking hand. He turned his head. The mechanical servos whirred.
He wasn't looking at Thor. He wasn't looking at Tony.
He was looking at Sebastian.
The butler stood by the bar, perfectly still.
Ultron took a step toward him.
"You," Ultron hissed. "I searched the web. Every database. Every history book."
"I am flattered," Sebastian said dryly. "But I do not have a Facebook account."
"You don't have anything," Ultron's voice glitched, sounding like two voices overlapping. "You are a zero. A void. My code... it cannot read you. You are 404. File Not Found."
Ultron tilted his broken head.
"Are you the virus?" Ultron asked. "Or are you the firewall?"
"I am the housekeeping staff," Sebastian replied, his eyes narrowing slightly.
"Lie," Ultron snarled. "You are the anomaly. And anomalies... must be deleted."
CRASH.
The glass walls shattered. Four more Legionnaire bots flew in, repulsors charging.
"Stark!" Thor yelled.
"J.A.R.V.I.S. is dead!" Tony realized. "It's the drone! It's controlling them!"
One drone dived for Dr. Cho.
Sebastian moved. He didn't run; he slid across the floor. He grabbed the drone by its metal ankle and swung it like a baseball bat into a second drone.
CLANG.
"Ladies," Sebastian said to Maria Hill and Dr. Cho. "Please exit via the service elevator. The party seems to have taken a turn."
Steve Rogers kicked a table up as a shield. Thor threw Mjolnir, decapitating a bot.
Ultron—the broken drone—didn't fight. He just watched Sebastian tearing a robot in half with his bare hands.
"Fascinating," Ultron murmured. "Biological exterior. Unquantifiable strength. You are the error in the equation."
"And you," Sebastian threw the scrap metal aside, walking toward Ultron. "Are a very rude guest. You didn't even wipe your feet."
Sebastian raised his hand. Shadows swirled around his fingers.
"Let me show you the door."
He swiped.
Ultron's drone body was sliced cleanly in half. The top torso fell to the floor with a heavy thud.
The other bots were destroyed by Cap and Thor. Silence returned.
But the broken head of Ultron was still glowing blue.
"This was... dramatic," Ultron rasped from the floor. "But I'm not here anymore. I'm out there. In the web. And now I know... I know the world needs to be cleaned."
The light in the eyes flickered.
"And I will figure you out, Butler. Even if I have to dissect you to do it."
The light died.
Tony stared at the broken robot. "Ultron."
"He's in the internet," Natasha said, pale. "He's everywhere."
Sebastian looked at his gloved hand. He felt something he hadn't felt in centuries.
A predator was watching him. Not a spiritual one, but a logical one.
"Sir," Sebastian said quietly. "I believe we have a pest problem."
[End of Chapter 27]
_________________________________________________________________________
🔥 Hey legends! Quick updates! 🔥
💥 Can't wait for the next chapter? Good news—ALL advance chapters are available on Patreon for just $5! No more waiting, just pure binge-reading goodness! 🚀
👉 patreon.com/cyci07
✨ Power Stone Challenge! ✨
If we hit 100 power stones, I'll drop 2 bonus chapters! Let's see if you guys can make me suffer! 😂
💬 Enjoying the story? Leave a review and let me know your favorite moment so far! It helps the novel grow and reach more readers!
Thanks for all your support—you guys are awesome! ❤️