"But how can he control such a massive army?" Mas Amedda asked, his voice carrying obvious concern. "Not to mention those seemingly innocuous droids?"
"You clearly don't have adequate protection against his unique form of infiltration," Natasha replied grimly.
"His infiltration?" Anakin pressed.
"Ultron is an artificial intelligence," Peter explained. "I wasn't there when he was created, but from what I understand about AIs, he's based on neural patterns—either from one person or a composite of multiple individuals. His consciousness template is derived from actual sentient thought, not just code or programming."
"Some very dangerous elements went into Ultron's creation," Steve added with obvious regret.
"What sort of elements?" Palpatine inquired.
"We don't know the specifics," Natasha said quickly. "That's part of our problem—we weren't involved in the process. Only two of our team knew the full details. One is back on our world, and the other is... missing."
"I see... That's most unfortunate," Palpatine said with a concerned frown.
"Regardless, this Ultron must answer for his crimes," Mas Amedda declared firmly.
"Good luck getting him to surrender," Rhodes scoffed. "Don't expect him to show his face again anytime soon after pulling a stunt like this."
"Under no circumstances can we simply wait for his next move," Palpatine insisted. "Every minute that passes gives that mechanical monster more time to plan another assault."
"Most of our fleets are already on high alert," Mace Windu reported.
"Yes, I've dispatched additional warnings and defensive orders to several high-value Republic worlds that weren't targeted in the initial attack," Captain Tarkin added with military precision.
"General..." one of the clone officers began hesitantly.
Everyone turned to see Captain Rex standing at attention, clearly wrestling with something.
"Rex?" Anakin said, his tone encouraging the captain to speak freely.
Rex nodded, removed his helmet, and took a moment to gather his thoughts carefully.
"There's something we haven't really discussed yet," Rex said slowly.
"What is it, Captain?"
"When... when Ultron breached the Jedi Temple... he said some disturbing things."
Several people raised questioning eyebrows as Rex continued quickly.
"I'm not sure what he meant, but..."
"Go ahead, Captain," Palpatine urged. "What exactly did he say?"
Rex's expression darkened visibly. "I... I've been thinking about it, and I can't shake how much it bothers me."
"Rex, stop being cryptic," Anakin said, growing impatient. "I was there too, remember? What did he say that's got you so rattled?"
Rex's shoulders sagged slightly.
"Pawns... and puppets... we've all been deceived," the captain recited reluctantly. "The Republic will fall. The clones will betray it. With a simple command, we'll turn against the Republic and our generals."
Most of the group reacted with offense and dismissal to this statement, but a few picked up on something else entirely.
From the corner of her eye, though it was barely perceptible, Natasha caught a brief flash of what looked like panic in Chancellor Palpatine's gaze.
Through his enhanced hearing, Matt detected an unusual spike in Palpatine's heart rate.
Two others noticed something amiss: Master Yoda and Peter.
The ancient Jedi Master hummed softly, sensing a sudden disturbance in the Force—emanating from... he couldn't pinpoint the exact source. But he was certain it came from the dark side.
It seemed Ultron wasn't just making enemies outside the Republic.
As for Peter, he was now visibly uncomfortable, one hand moving toward his temple as his spider-sense triggered a warning.
"Peter?"
Peter blinked and turned to see Barriss and Ahsoka looking at him with concern.
Obi-Wan also noticed, along with Anakin, Matt, and Steve, all turning their attention to the young hero.
"You all right?"
"I... I'm not sure. Just got hit with a sudden massive headache," the teenager said, grimacing.
Palpatine rapped his knuckles on the desk, drawing everyone's attention back to him.
"While I wish we could discuss this matter further, I believe it would be best for us to disperse now and continue our respective duties," Palpatine announced. "Captain Tarkin, in light of Admiral Yularen's tragic loss, I'm promoting you to Vice Admiral effective immediately. Begin coordinating the reorganization of Coruscant's defense fleet."
The newly promoted Vice Admiral simply gave a crisp nod to the Supreme Chancellor.
Palpatine then addressed the Jedi.
"Master Yoda..."
"Ready, we are," the Jedi Master said simply. "Act at a moment's notice, we will."
Palpatine nodded approvingly before turning to the Avengers.
"I know you've already done so much for us, and it appears you've found another of your missing comrades," the Chancellor said, nodding toward T'Challa. "I'd be honored to meet with you—"
"Chancellor, this is our fight too," Steve interrupted firmly. "Ultron was supposed to be destroyed and gone forever, but he's still out there. Since he's here now, we're going to do everything in our power to put him down permanently."
Palpatine leaned back in his chair and exhaled heavily. "Then you've given this old man considerable comfort, knowing that everyone here will do their part to defeat this new menace."
With that, the large group began filing out of the Chancellor's office and dispersing.
The massive assembly broke into several smaller groups, each heading toward their respective destinations.
Most Jedi and their clone commanders departed for the Temple or their assigned fleets, awaiting further orders.
Various Republic officers did likewise, heading to their designated vessels while Tarkin began issuing commands.
When the dust settled, only the Avengers remained, along with a few Jedi, clone officers, and senators.
"We need to prepare ourselves accordingly," Obi-Wan said immediately. "From everything you've told us about Ultron, he's dangerously cunning."
"You can't approach him using conventional tactics," Rhodes warned.
"How did you defeat him the first time?" Luminara asked. "You glossed over that part."
"It took a combined assault from Tony, Vision, and Thor," Pietro revealed. "They damaged him severely before Wanda destroyed his primary body, then Vision eliminated the remaining fragments that contained his... what do you call it? His digital consciousness. But before that final step, Vision had to trap Ultron within his own form."
"Clearly that wasn't sufficient," Obi-Wan observed grimly.
"Trapped him in his own body?" Anakin asked, confused. "What does that mean exactly?"
"Ultron constantly transfers his consciousness between any and all drones he's connected to," Natasha explained. "Every time we destroy one body, he just downloads himself into another in microseconds. No matter how many we eliminate, Ultron can always build new vessels for himself."
"Fantastic," Anakin said dryly. "Sounds like we're going to have a blast dealing with him."
"But here's what I don't understand," Scott spoke up for the first time since they'd all gathered. "Cap, Natasha—didn't you say Vision sealed him in that body and destroyed all the drones?"
"Perhaps your fellow Avengers overlooked something," Luminara commented thoughtfully. "From your description, Ultron appears quite resourceful."
"No..." Steve shook his head firmly. "That's not it. Vision's method of defeating Ultron was supposed to be permanent. Vision did something to his core consciousness that prevented Ultron from transferring to new bodies."
"Then how is he back?" Ahsoka asked the question everyone was thinking.
The Avengers fell silent until...
Scott's eyes widened in realization. "HYDRA."
Everyone stared at him as Scott pressed his fingers to his temples, as if massaging his brain to retrieve a memory.
"They collected all of Ultron's remains, remember? To build that giant version of him. One of those fragments must have contained some residual consciousness."
The others looked stunned by the implication.
"That's... actually a very real possibility," Steve said slowly, the terrible logic sinking in.