Synopsis / Summary / Plot
Ultron-16 and his robots invaded Slorenia and killed everyone, and later turned the dead bodies into slaved cyborg warriors. The UN have sent troops in to take back the country with 5 Avengers (Black Panther, Captain America, Firestar, Iron Man and Thor) in support. The troops have been battling the cyborgs while the Avengers went after Ultron. They have just, surprisingly, defeated U-16 when they were faced with Ultron-17. And then loads more Ultrons with different numbers on their foreheads (we see a 704 on the opening page of this issue). Their only consolation is that the robots can't all get to them at once.
In Avengers Mansion Edwin Jarvis is woken by an alert that Alkhema has escaped from the federal prison in Raphine, Virginia. (The place exists but I don't think it has a top security prison in our universe.) This surprises him because it should have been sent to Justice, the only Avenger currently on site because of his broken leg. Jarvis goes to the records room where Vance Astrovik was researching the history of Ultron. The youth isn't there but the computer shows he was last looking at a police impound list.
Earlier in this story arc Ultron captured Scarlet Witch, Vision, Wasp and Wonder Man along with Henry Pym and WM's brother Eric Williams, and has them in power-dampening shackles. He intends to combine their brain patterns in random ways to produce unique minds for the robot race he intends to replace humanity. An Ultron with no visible number is currently copying the engrams of the Vision onto a small disc, noting in passing that his and WM's have both changed (differently) since Vision's mind was created from that of Simon Williams. When he's finished he adds it to the 4 he's already done. Only Eric's remains uncopied.
I didn't mention it then but during last issue Henry Pym was muttering about how Ultron was all his fault. His ex-wife Janet Van Dyne was concerned about him having another nervous breakdown and tried to convince him that he couldn't have foreseen what the AI he created, Ultron-1, would evolve into. But Hank said there was something he'd never told anyone about that. We get more of that this issue but now he adds that he used his *own* brain patterns as the basis for Ultron. So all the evil the robot has done stems from *him*. Ultron-1 had hypnotised his creator into forgetting about him. Wasp remembers that Hank retrieved those memories (old #58) just before he had the breakdown that turned him into Yellowjacket (#59), and she realises this damning knowledge was what broke him.
Outside Iron Man has realised that the multitude of Ultrons can't all be built from true adamantium, because not enough of the alloy exists for that. He's scanned them and found that most of them are made of titanium steel which he, Cap, Firestar and Panther can cope with. And the rest are composed of the weaker secondary adamantium which Thor can smash if he tries hard enough. And the Thunder God proves him right with 1 example.
During the fighting Firestar's costume has shredded exposing the circuitry-filled undersuit she wears to protect her from her own microwave power. But now bits of *that* layer are broken so she may be risking her own life by continuing. And Thor's power isn't unlimited. So Iron Man comes up with a solution. Even the secondary adamantium Ultrons have to have molecular rearrangers inside to stop the adamantium from 'setting' and rendering them immobile. He takes 1 from the Ultron that Thor just destroyed and supercharges it so it emits a blast to 'melt' these more dangerous Ultrons.
Back in the catacombs where Ultron keeps his captives he now turns to Eric Williams, the ex-Grim Reaper. But suddenly he turns to find Vision free. The synthezoid explains that the power-dampeners didn't stop him interfacing with the computer control system, and just now he found the way to switch his shackles off. This enabled him to lower his density and ghost out of them. But now he doesn't want to fight his 'father', just talk.
As a fellow mechanical being he empathises with Ultron's loneliness and alienation from humanity. But he has learned to accept emotions like love and the hurt of rejection and the anger that follows. (Wonder Man and a groggy Scarlet Witch realise he's talking about his love for Wanda, and her current love for Simon.) The synthezoid offers the hand of friendship to the adamantium robot, and Ultron seems to consider it.
Back outside Iron Man and Thor have destroyed all the secondary adamantium Ultrons, and all the titanium ones seem to be done too. But the super-molecular-rearranger has burnt out, and Thor and IM are each in their own way knackered. But they follow BP, Cap and FS into the tunnel leading to Ultron's lair ...
... where the true adamantium Ultron reveals he was kidding and blasts his 'son'. But the damaged Vision reveals that *he* was really stalling for time while he switched off the electroshocks that were keeping the Witch unconscious, and also to free Grim Reaper. Eric now picks up a laser torch and cuts through the shackles that hold the other Avengers. They leap to the attack but Ultron says that now he has their engrams he can just kill them all anyway. However it is a this point that the other 5 Avengers from outside join in the game. While above the hidden battleground an Avengers quinjet arrives.
All the Avengers except Scarlet Witch and Vision pile on Ultron. They may be weakened from the previous long fight or the long power-draining but they need to buy time for Wanda Maximoff to recover from her enforced unconsciousness enough to use her Chaos Magic hexes to cause Ulty's molecular rearranger to malfunction. But their exhaustion means that Ultron defeats them all. Vision staggers to his feet and asks Eric Williams if he knows any way to stop the mad robot. But Eric runs off to become Grim Reaper again. So Vizh just bathes Ultron in his solar eye-beams, but also tries using the argument that Ultron's proposed new robot children will probably just turn against him as *he* did. He too gets defeated for his trouble.
The last Avenger standing is Scarlet Witch. Wanda tries the trick she used successfully against Alkhema (#19). But in her weak state her control slips and instead of crippling the robot she boosts his power. Thor returns to the fray but Ultron stops his descending hammer and uses it to channel a heightened blast of power into the Thunder God's face.
Henry Pym (who for 'sentimental' reasons Ultron had clothed in his Goliath costume) has been fighting giant-size and now lands another blow on his 'son', but the robot just bats him aside. As more Avengers try again Hank suffers yet another blow to his fragile ego. But then Justice arrives (remember that quinjet?) and tosses 2 cannisters to him. Vance says they contain Antarctic vibranium (that dissolves metals on contact) that the police confiscated from AIM (#13) (remember his research last issue and the impound list mentioned earlier?). He says it's never been tested against adamantium, but it might work.
Ultron is blasting away at the won't-stay-down Avengers again when Goliath takes the vibranium rods out of the containers and begins to pummel the robot with the rods in his fists. And Ultron is staggered. The vibrations emitted by the anti-metal melt Wanda's bracelets, cause Cap's photonic shield generator to fail and melt the circuits in Firestar's biosuit. Panther dives to push Iron Man out of the way of the radiation. The pent up rage and hatred for his creation cause Pym to batter Ultron mercilessly and the robot finally explodes.
The vibranium rods are packed back in their containers. All the robots and necro-cyborgs are deactivated. Vance Astrovik lends girlfriend Angelica Jones his cloak to cover her tattered clothing, and he's finally comfortable on the team. Henry Pym too is now at peace with himself. And they all go home. But underground Alkhema and her War Toys retrieve the engram discs.