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"All right. Look alive, Jarvis." I don't look up from my computer as Tony enters the lab. "It's playtime. We only got a couple of days with this joystick, so let's make the most of it."
"Don't fuck anything up, Stark." I warn, glancing his way.
"You're sounding a lot like the Captain, Redbird. But you know, with a potty mouth." He cocks an eyebrow. "Update me on the structural and compositional analysis."
"The scepter is alien." Jarvis tells him. "There are elements I can't quantify."
"So there's elements you can?" Tony asks.
"The jewel appears to be a protective housing for something inside, something powerful."
"Like a reactor?" I ask, looking up from my work on Strucker's files.
"Like a computer." Jarvis says. "I believe I'm deciphering code."
Tony grins, leaving the room as Jarvis does his work. I look back down at my computer, going through each individual file on the hardrive, which Jarvis has decoded for me.
In the silence of the lab I look up at Loki's sceptre, memories of conflict and pain coming to mind. I get to my feet, my mind full of images of New York, the Chitauri, Stu, my mom. She was killed all in the name of Loki's mission, and Stu's need for power.
Loki killed my mom, Hydra killed my dad. Everyone just wants to hurt me, or use me, take away my powers and create something evil.
"Zoey?" I snap away from my thoughts and look up at Tony, who has returned with Bruce.
"What are you doing?" He asks, and I look to realise that I'm holding the sceptre.
"N-Nothing." I mumble, placing it back on it's stand and walking over to my computer.
"You okay?" Bruce asks, putting a hand on my shoulder.
"Mm." I nod, not looking up. "I'm fine."
"We were wondering how Strucker got so inventive." Tony speaks up, earning Bruce's attention. "So I've been analyzing the gem inside."
He brings up a projection of Jarvis, a large orange power source moving with calculations.
"Meet the competition." He adds, bringing up another projection, this time blue and flowing like liquid.
"It's beautiful." Bruce says in awe.
"It looks like it's thinking." I add. "It's not a human mind, they're like neurons firing."
"Down in Strucker's lab, we saw some fairly advanced robotics work." Tony says. "They deep-sixed the data, but I gotta guess he was knocking on a very particular door."
"Artificial intelligence." Bruce realises.
"This could be it, Bruce." Tony beams. "This could be the key to creating Ultron."
"Ultron's a fantasy." I interrupt, narrowing my eyes. "He's an interface I was creating two months ago, and I gave up because I got bored. Ultron is nothing, Tony."
"Two months ago it was, but maybe not anymore." Tony says, and I stand up to join them. "If we can harness this power, finish your interface, and then apply it the Iron Legion protocol?"
"That's a man-sized "if." I say.
"Our job is "if." Tony turns to Bruce. "What if you were sipping margaritas on a sun-drenched beach, turning brown instead of green?"
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Childhood Hero: Redbirds Past and Present (Captain America/Avengers Story)
Fanfiction[BOOK THREE IN THE CHILDHOOD HERO SERIES] Life has been harsh to Zoey Redbird, but she is no longer alone. The Avengers are a family, always there to protect each other. Marrying Steve Rogers and being with the ones she loves will make Zoey's dreams...
