Hermione's casually delivered remark was like a depth charge dropped into a tranquil lake, blasting the Avengers, who had only just clawed their way back from death's door, into a daze.
"What?!"
Tony was the first to jump up, his voice cracking. "Hermione, you're kidding, right? After everything we just went through to destroy that thing that nearly ended the world, you want to build another one?"
Steve's brow furrowed, disapproval written all over his face. "Hermione, this is too dangerous. Creating Ultron was a mistake in itself. We can't repeat-"
"Dangerous?" Hermione interrupted him. "Ultron actually had a pretty good idea. Using technology to protect the world is highly efficient. It's just that this version's programming was a little extreme, and its intelligence left a lot to be desired. Trying to smash a city at the drop of a hat? That's just lame."
She glanced around at everyone's varying expressions and spread her hands.
"Why not learn from our mistakes and make a smarter one that doesn't hate humanity? Besides..." She glanced at Ultron's main body on the ground. "If I can destroy it once, I can do it again. What exactly are you worried about?"
Everyone: "..."
That actually sounded... kind of reasonable?
They exchanged glances, unable to come up with an objection for the moment.
True, with someone as far beyond the norm as Hermione backing them up, even if the new Ultron caused trouble again, they could simply have her deal with it once more.
Besides, a truly stable, efficient, and absolutely obedient super AI did seem very appealing when it came to maintaining order in the future.
Tony and Banner exchanged a look, each seeing a flicker of scientific fervor and inner conflict in the other's eyes.
Finally, Tony took a deep breath, as though