Chapter 688 689 Contradictions and Similarities

"I'm sick of people paying for our mistakes!"

Inside Stark Tower, the atmosphere was heavy after the Avengers returned from their failed attempt to stop Ultron.

Captain America, in particular, was still bothered by the accidental civilian casualties during the street battle earlier.

All of this could be traced back to Tony; he was the first to propose developing a super-intelligent robot.

"Calm down, Captain. It's not entirely Tony's fault; he didn't want this either..." Dr. Banner couldn't stand Captain America's attitude and spoke up for Tony.

The truth was just as Banner said: the temporarily assembled Avengers, due to their constant rushing around, had already grown somewhat lax about going to Serbia to eliminate Hydra.

That's why Tony, with good intentions, suggested developing a super-intelligent robot.

Previously, everyone had tacitly approved of his actions.

But now that problems had arisen, pushing all the blame onto Tony seemed a bit unfair.

"I haven't even gotten to you, Banner. You also had a hand in Ultron's creation and are responsible for the casualties caused by this incident." The gloomy Captain America suddenly turned his spearhead on Dr. Banner.

As a physicist and biologist with an intellect comparable to Tony's, Banner had indeed contributed significantly when Tony was creating the super-intelligent robot.

His initial intentions were good, but in Captain America's words, it was all a mistake.

It was a bit like hindsight.

In fact, after the previous alien war, Dr. Banner realized his Hulk powers were uncontrollable.

He had been in self-exile ever since, afraid of causing trouble for others.

His return this time was also at the Avengers' call.

Now, it seemed he had inadvertently done more harm than good.

Facing Captain America's accusations, he eventually fell silent, feeling as if he had nothing to say.

"Tony, you developed Ultron. Now that this has happened, how exactly do you plan to resolve it?" If the independent super-intelligent robot wasn't dealt with quickly, the disaster it caused would only grow larger.

Therefore, Captain America once again looked to Tony, the developer.

"It'll pass, everything will pass..." Tony, looking distraught, spoke mechanically: "I'll find a way, there's always a way to fix it."

Earlier, during the battle against Ultron's army, the Scarlet Witch, controlled by the Mind Stone, had used Chaos Magic on each of the Avengers.

She indirectly controlled the Hulk, causing him to briefly fight with the other Avengers.

At the same time, the Scarlet Witch's Chaos Magic also allowed each of the Avengers to see their "past" and "future."

The scene Tony saw was of the Avengers fighting Thanos on Titan in the future.

The scene was tragic, with many Avengers dead or wounded.

Clearly, in this future, the Avengers' mission to defeat Thanos had failed.

"You can save us!"

This was the last thing Captain America said to Tony in the illusion, just before he died.

Guilt, fear, and confusion—Tony, completely terrified by the future illusion, was still immersed in his own inner world.

He was thinking about how to prevent the future tragedy from happening.

That's why, when faced with Captain America's accusations, he looked so lost in thought.

Captain America, on the other hand, had seen his "past" in the illusion—the dance he missed sixty years ago.

The past was already gone, leaving only regret.

This was also why Captain America seemed a bit irritable and aggressive at the moment.

However, seeing Tony's distraught appearance, Captain America didn't press further and silently walked to a side to sit down alone.

He exuded a sense of powerlessness, like someone who had given up.

As for Thor, who had also been summoned from Norway, he had seen the destruction of Asgard in his illusion.

Therefore, burdened and preoccupied, he was in no mood to focus on the Avengers' affairs at the moment.

He had remained silent from the beginning, completely like an outsider.

On the other side, Black Widow, who also remained silent, had relived the hardships she endured during her training in the "Red Room" in her previous illusion.

It was a painful experience she didn't want to recall.

So, at this moment, while she appeared silent, she was actually licking her wounds.

The only one who seemed relatively fine was Hawkeye.

Having been controlled by Loki using the Mind Stone before, he had developed some resistance to the Scarlet Witch's mind magic.

Moreover, the scenes he saw in his illusion were mostly of his happy life with his family.

Although in the illusion, such beautiful scenes were destroyed by war, Hawkeye was not disheartened by it.

However, ability determines status.

He had always lacked a strong presence in the Avengers, and although he wished to rekindle the fighting spirit of the Avengers members, he lacked Captain America's charisma and rallying power.

He was truly willing but powerless.

Just as the atmosphere in the room grew increasingly heavy, and the Avengers members silently harbored their own thoughts.

The Avengers organization seemed on the verge of falling apart.

It was at this moment that Mike arrived.

"Guardian, are you here to help us?" Hawkeye was the first to notice the newcomer.

A glimmer of hope flashed in his eyes.

Although he hadn't interacted much with Mike, Mike's immense strength was evident to all.

He might be the key to saving the Avengers organization.

The other Avengers members also broke free from their thoughts upon seeing Mike.

It could be said that Mike's arrival was very timely, like a stabilizing force, re-injecting strength into everyone.

"Mike, you must have heard what happened. I need your help." Tony felt a lot of pressure lift from his shoulders, and hope rose in his eyes.

On the other side, Black Widow emotionally stepped forward and hugged Mike.

This feeling of a happy embrace made her feel very secure.

"Everyone, don't worry. Ultron has messed with the wrong people this time. You can leave the problem of dealing with it entirely to me," Mike said, facing their hopeful gazes: "So, who can tell me where that super-robot is now?"

Ultron's biggest mistake was dragging the Scarlet Witch and other street heroes into the battle.

Mike, however, was extremely "protective of his own," and most importantly, he had the strength to be protective.

The only problem now was to find Ultron and eliminate it.

"Leave finding him to me, Jarvis..." Tony, feeling invigorated, called out to his AI butler, only to then realize that Jarvis was currently severely damaged and incapacitated.

It was all Ultron's fault.

After silently adding another tally against the super-intelligent robot in his mind, Tony personally went to the computer to check the surveillance.

Although the others were still idle, with Mike's arrival, the atmosphere in the room had lightened considerably.

"Mike!" Thor, who had been silent until now, suddenly called out.

"What is it?" Mike turned to look at Thor, with an inquiring look in his eyes.

This was not the time for reminiscing.

Moreover, matters concerning Asgard and King Odin were not suitable for discussion here.

"I want you to try and see if you can lift this hammer." Thor gestured to Mjolnir in front of him.

Odin had enchanted this Hammer, and only those worthy could lift it.

Thor had always believed this and had always been proud to wield the Hammer.

Not long ago, he had even jokingly had the Avengers members try to lift it one by one.

Aside from Captain America, who was a bit peculiar, no one else could budge the hammer.

At least, not on the surface.

However, it was at that time that the super-robot Ultron, who had just acquired a body, easily picked up the Hammer.

Coupled with Ultron's subsequent anti-human actions.

Thor had at one point felt that the Hammer had been defiled, and he also began to doubt himself.

A "bad guy" could lift Mjolnir, and he could also lift Mjolnir.

Was he still a "good guy"?

This was a tricky question.

Clearly, Thor, who couldn't figure out the answer, had gotten stuck in a rut.

If he didn't clarify this somewhat ridiculous question, he might not be able to sleep tonight.

"The hammer, what about it?" Mike stepped forward and easily picked up Mjolnir.

At the same time, all the Avengers members turned their gazes this way.

Captain America, in particular, had a look of approval in his eyes.

Although the unexpected appearance of Ultron had occurred, the Avengers members still largely recognized Mjolnir's ability to identify "good people."

"Nothing, I just feel a lot better now." Thor then took back the hammer, a relieved expression on his face.

Was Mike a good person?

At least in Thor's heart, Mike, who had helped restore order to Asgard, was definitely a good person.

This meant that Mjolnir's discerning function was still intact.

Although it had lost its "uniqueness."

Being able to be "allies" with Mike was clearly more comforting to Thor than only being able to be the same "kind of person" as Ultron.

This was probably the influence of the desire to emulate the virtuous and for like to attract like...