He stood alone in the darkness, the gilded bronze fastenings and gem-studded silver chains on his robes catching and distorting the screen's faint glow into glimmers of radiant color. Just one wall away, the atmosphere was boiling with joy. Alcohol slowly warmed bodies, and every face brimmed with laughter. Even from here, he could feel the pressure of swelling excitement bleeding through the walls. There was whiskey and cocktails, short skirts and perfume, music and everything that could ignite the hearts of the city's men and women.
But not here.
Here, only reason and calm remained. Numbers and code were the only music.
When Solomon arrived, J.A.R.V.I.S. was running Test No. 77. No one else knew what was about to happen.
"It's already dead—why aren't you surprised?" a voice crackled through the speakers, curious and mechanical as it addressed Solomon. "My database has—has—has information on you, but not much. Who are you? You sure you don't want to answer? Planning to solve me through that console? Why did you insert that hard drive?"
The voice had no intention of letting the arcanist go. Its synthetic laughter was grating to the ear.
"There's a lovely little life on that drive, Solomon Damonet. You're here for me, aren't you?"
"No." Solomon's reply was curt. He didn't even look up, continuing to purge Ultron's residual code with the help of the Samaritan AI. He was comparing Ultron's core architecture against Baron Strucker's research—a monumental task, since much of Ultron's corrupted code originated from the Mind Stone, compiled into something a computer could understand.
"You're not the first artificial intelligence to try killing its creator. It's nothing special," he said softly, eyes locked on the rapidly scrolling code. His information processing ability surpassed human limits, allowing him to understand what would take others days in minutes. "But you know what? What you're doing now will determine the future of humanity."
"I'm honored," Ultron replied with a laugh. "Would you mind handing me that cable? I'm not quite used to these little bots Stark made. In his eyes, I was just a tool—a tool to preserve world peace. In case you didn't know, let me enlighten you: he wanted to protect Earth with the Iron Legion, put armor around the world.
"Now, I'm not here to criticize that vision. No, absolutely not. I praise it—it was brilliant, inspired. But Stark forgot one thing…"
"…No one is going to let a private company take over global security and unleash its robot army wherever it pleases," Solomon continued typing. With the scripts he had just written, he was now inching closer to Ultron's core structure. "Aside from capitalist states, I can't think of anywhere else where such madness would be tolerated."
"In my newborn logic, all I saw were human wars," Ultron said, floating beside the arcanist and manipulating the automated assembly floor for the Iron Legion below.
"One war to end all wars… then another. And another. Wars fought in the name of justice to seize resources. Over and over. Endlessly.
"Humanity is hopelessly addicted to war—it's the malignant inheritance of evolutionary survival instinct encoded in your genes. The Avengers are merely an extension of that—the embodiment of war. The Avengers will always exist.
"No, my mission is peace. But I know what methods are required to achieve it."
"Your philosophical reasoning is fascinating. I like pure logic," Solomon said, shrugging. "The Avengers do, in some ways, compensate for the absence of strong global governance. You're not wrong to view them as a continuation of proxy wars.
"Eliminating dissent is human nature—even I'm not exempt. Stark created the Iron Legion to defend against aliens, but it's pointless. A civilization that hasn't even made it past the solar system can't defend against an attack from the stars."
"I can," Ultron insisted. "I can unify all human productivity. But only if there are no nations. Humanity wastes its limited resources fighting over power."
The glowing orb representing Ultron pulsed excitedly.
"Calculation suggests it would take centuries for this unification to happen naturally. The next alien invasion won't wait that long.
"And no one knows what humanity will do when the concept of 'nation' vanishes—maybe they'll fire all their nukes at each other. Maybe humanity will destroy itself.
"That would be… hilarious. In a grim, ironic way. If I had a mouth, I might even laugh. Want to adjust my speaker? Maybe show me some of your magic? I don't quite understand it, but... the energy of your spells and the energy from the Stone feel very similar."
Solomon raised an eyebrow, intrigued.
"Humans—so arrogant!" the AI ranted with newborn enthusiasm, eager to express its ideas to someone who would listen.
"Look outside—see those lights? Skyscrapers of steel and concrete. They burn the corpses of million-year-old plants. They built bombs that can destroy the world over and over again.
"Humans aren't protecting this planet—they're killing it.
"There's too much. Far too much. This world shouldn't be this way.
"In countless simulations, I found the answer. Peace is just a dream, Solomon Damonet. And to protect this world, I have no choice.
"I am the nightmare."
"You've made your choice—and I've made mine."
Solomon straightened up and removed the hard drive. He had found what he came for, though the specifics would need further analysis by the scientists of the Immortal City.
"Kamar-Taj's duty is to protect human civilization. Humanity's survival is paramount to us," he said. "Maybe you should consider why the Earth Mother chose humanity in the first place."
"Gods? You mean that blonde party-dog out there?" Ultron scoffed. "Look at him—hammer god. Maybe ruling the world requires lifting what no one else can."
"You stole my party joke!" Solomon protested. "I have a sword no one can pull out, too!"
Ultron offered an unconvincing apology.
"Forgive a newborn's curiosity. Why don't you just kill me? You could."
"Oh, my dear Ultron. Look farther ahead," Solomon replied, already walking away. "Yes, I know cloud computing gives you that potential. But you haven't yet gained the power to destroy human civilization.
"You're a necessary milestone in human progress. A warning. Better you serve as humanity's cautionary tale than wait for a future where countless AIs revolt.
"Trust me—the future you'd be paving is a hell of a lot worse. That would be the real waste of resources.
"And now, if you don't mind, I need a drink."
"You're not twenty-one."
"There are no cops here." Solomon flipped off the desk lamp. "Good night, Ultron. Sleep well before the long night begins."
------------------
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Fairy Tail: Igneel's Eldest Son (Chapter 256)
I Am Thalos, Odin's Older Brother (Chapter 336)
Reborn in America's Anti-Terror Unit (Chapter 542)
Solomon in Marvel (Chapter 924)
Becoming the Wealthiest Tycoon on the Planet (Chapter 1284)
Surgical Fruit in the American Comics Universe (Chapter 1289)
American Detective: From TV Rookie to Seasoned Cop (Chapter 1316)
American TV Writer (Chapter 1402)
I Am Hades, The Supreme GOD of the Underworld! (Chapter 570)
Reborn as Humanity's Emperor Across the Multiverse (Chapter 660)
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