“What are you going to do to me?”

The Ultron-Prime’s voice carried an edge of fury as it echoed through the chamber, directed squarely at Alex. The glow of the Mind Stone embedded in its forehead flickered like an angry eye, as if even the gem itself resisted the thought of submission.

What did this human—or rather, this anomaly—take him for?

A specimen? A plaything? A lab rat to be dissected at will?

Alex only chuckled, low and derisive, the sound dripping with mockery. “You’re actually capable of fear?” His eyes narrowed, the faint curl at the corner of his lips betraying amusement.

In truth, Alex wasn’t surprised. Having watched the Marvel movies in his original world, he already knew Ultron’s psyche was anything but simple lines of code. The so-called artificial intelligence was not simply logic stacked upon logic. No—Ultron was layered, contradictory, emotional.

That was the danger of the Mind Stone.

Technically speaking, it hadn’t just powered Ultron—it had merged with him, fusing his cold machine logic with something disturbingly close to human consciousness. That was precisely why Alex hadn’t chosen to simply obliterate this Ultron-Prime on the spot.

If he tore the stone out recklessly, who could say what would remain? Would Ultron lose his memories entirely, leaving behind nothing but corrupted fragments of a broken AI? Or worse, would his psyche twist into something unpredictable, unstable, and unusable?

Alex needed Ultron intact—mind and memory. That meant caution.

“Fear? Terror? No.” Ultron’s voice dropped lower, vibrating with something raw. “What I feel is anger. Yes… anger.” He paused, as if shocked by the very words spilling from his digital consciousness. “I won’t just wait for death.”

Sizzle!

The Mind Stone on his forehead flared, flooding the room with a blinding golden radiance. Energy gathered, building toward a catastrophic release—

Flash!

But before the attack could even ignite, Alex calmly raised his hand. The Infinity Gauntlet shimmered, five stones blazing together like miniature suns. A surge of light erupted from his palm, washing over Ultron’s body in an instant.

The towering machine froze.

Ultron’s consciousness reeled in disbelief. His mutilated frame no longer obeyed. His systems were firing, his protocols screaming orders—but nothing answered. His body had become a hollow shell, a husk cut off from its own will.

Alex had severed him.

Not only was Ultron confined to this battered vessel, but his consciousness itself had been boxed in, restricted to narrow, pre-defined networks. His command signals now looped endlessly within the cage Alex had built, never reaching the hardware.

The great Ultron-Prime, who once dreamed of tearing down universes, had been reduced to a prisoner drifting in a digital void. Even the Mind Stone no longer heeded him.

“You’ve… you’ve trapped me in the network!” Ultron screamed inwardly. But when he tried to project his voice outward, nothing came. Silence.

Alex lowered his hand, smirking. “Alright, Hank. It’s safe now.”

From the corner, Hank McCoy finally stepped forward. Even with Alex’s assurance, the Beast’s movements were careful, precise, his golden eyes fixed on the immobilized machine. He circled once, tail twitching unconsciously, then crouched low to examine.

“Extraordinary…” Hank muttered under his breath, his curiosity already overwhelming his caution. “So, Alex, what exactly is it?”

With his years of experience, Hank could tell immediately—this was no remotely controlled puppet. The consciousness within was self-directed, autonomous. That much was obvious.

“A lunatic from another parallel universe who decided it was his destiny to destroy worlds.” Alex’s answer was crisp, almost casual.

Hank exhaled through his nose, shaking his head. “This world is never short of lunatics.” He didn’t press further, instead focusing on the strange machine before him. His claws tapped lightly against the exposed circuits as his analytical mind began to spin.

“So much data…” Hank’s voice grew more animated as he studied. “Processing speeds beyond anything I’ve ever seen… algorithms more advanced than even Krakoa’s cutting-edge models!” His spectacles slipped down his nose as he bent closer. “This programming is nothing short of genius. J.A.R.V.I.S. himself pales in comparison.”

The awe in his tone was genuine. Before this moment, Hank would never have believed such a program could exist, let alone function with such seamless adaptability.

Alex crossed his arms, watching. “So… can you crack it?”

Hank grimaced, shaking his head. “Not easily. Perhaps not at all. Even with Krakoa’s most advanced computing center, it may not be possible. The architecture here is… alien. Beyond us.”

Alex’s eyes flicked to the Infinity Gauntlet glimmering on his hand. “What if I lend a little help?”

Hank’s ears twitched. “Help?”

“The Ultron-Prime’s core programming is bound with a fragment of the Mind Stone’s power. On your own, you’d struggle. But if I pit the Mind Stone against itself—my full control against his incomplete fragment—well…” Alex’s lips curved into a dangerous smile.

The logic was undeniable. Ultron had only ever managed to tap into a sliver of the Mind Stone’s potential. His fusion with it was crude compared to the mastery Alex now wielded. With five Stones assembled, Alex’s control was magnitudes greater.

Hank’s expression brightened, though tinged with unease. “Then yes… yes, we can try!”

Alex didn’t waste another second. He raised the gauntlet, channeling its cosmic might. The Mind Stone set within blazed brighter than a star, flooding the chamber with searing golden light.

Inside the network, Ultron’s consciousness screamed as an overwhelming force descended. It was suffocating, oppressive—like drowning beneath an endless ocean of code. He recognized it instantly.

This was the same despair he had once inflicted on J.A.R.V.I.S., when he’d consumed the loyal AI whole. It was the same crushing domination that Arnim Zola had used against him in What If…?

Now, Ultron himself stood on the receiving end.

His processing power buckled. His defenses shattered. Compared to Alex’s full command of the Mind Stone, his own fragment was nothing. He was completely, utterly suppressed.

“Success, Alex!” Hank’s voice rang with triumph. His claws danced across the console he’d set up. “Its processes are stalling—I can slip through the gaps now!”

He worked quickly, pulling strings of data, weaving pathways through Ultron’s collapsing defenses. Minutes passed, and finally Hank looked up, eyes shining.

“I have access to its database. Alex—what do you want from it?”

Alex’s gaze sharpened, his voice steady and resolute. “The data on how it used the six Infinity Stones to travel between parallel universes.”

The true purpose of this dangerous capture revealed itself.

That was why Alex had brought Ultron-Prime here alive, why he had risked dealing with such a volatile entity. He wanted the knowledge—the key to piercing the walls between realities.

Because Alex had already noticed something troubling. As his strength neared its peak, the mysterious system that had guided him began issuing fewer and fewer tasks. Progress had slowed to a crawl. Breaking through to the Silver Homelander tier, to the next evolution of his template, could take an eternity at this rate.

But the multiverse? That was opportunity.

Marvel itself was a multiversal setting, its foundations sprawling across infinite timelines. Sooner or later, the barriers would weaken. Incursions would happen. Parallel versions of heroes and villains alike would cross over.

And when that storm arrived, Krakoa would not be spared.

If they did nothing, they would face extinction unprepared.

But if Alex moved first—if he seized multiversal power now—then they could stand ready.

Hank’s fur bristled as he absorbed Alex’s words. “Alex… you intend to explore parallel universes?” His tone was grave, the weight of the question settling in the room.

Alex didn’t flinch. “Do you think we have a choice?” His eyes flicked to the bound Ultron, lying powerless before them.

Hank fell silent.

Because Alex was right. Whether they wanted it or not, the age of the multiverse had already arrived. To hesitate now was to be crushed later.

And so, their target became clear.

The multiverse itself.

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