She knew that she was running out of time.
Octavius's hands jittered as she tested a circuit board, electrodes were in those hands and, a scowl on her face as she struggled to steady her hands. But like usual the woman failed, meaning that she needed to resort to calling for her assistant; some young brown-haired kid that Stark had forced on her a few months ago.
Not due to her jitter but probably to keep an eye on her, Olivia was known to be somewhat eccentric and flighty when it came to ensuring proper safety measures were adhered to.
Lucky for Olivia, her jittery hands hadn't been noticed yet, if it had been even someone with Stark's recklessness wouldn't allow her such a hands-on approach to the projects that she was working on.
Not that Olivia would blame the man for it. If a worker that she employed started to get shaky hands, she'd be removed from working on fragile circuit boards and wiring projects. It was only that the woman wanted, she needed to be the one that brought the project to fruition.
If she wasn't involved it would take years, maybe even decades for the project to reach a workable stage without Doctor Octavius at the helm.
Her entire life's work would be for nothing if she couldn't at least create a signal functional mechanical cybernetic arms. One that worked not on the nerves of the body, but took signals from the brain and sent them wirelessly back to the limbs.
If the Doctor could do that, her shaky limbs wouldn't matter so much, she'd have limbs that didn't care that her nerves were degenerating over time. And she'd create a much less complicated procedure for, if not still dangerous, prosthetics implantations.
No more messy nerve connections that would take weeks. Just a single operation over a few short hours. The world would be changed forever, the process would become cheaper, access to the tech would ease thanks to Stark's current stance.
After all, his company would be willing to absorb the financial loss on the hardware that would allow them to corner the market, edging any competitor out easily before they make the project of prosthetic improvements that the tech would allow over the years.
But Doctor Octavius would be the one that was credited for the creation, she'd be the genius that would be known by those that mattered. A life of luxury would be hers, Stark would give her as much money as it took to keep her from being stolen by other companies, and if not? She'd take offers as if she was auctioning a house off.
Olivia could see it now. She just had to finish it before her limbs started to fail her, something that looked unlikely if her assistant didn't start to take their job seriously.
"Oi!" The Doctor yelled out, trying to call her assistant. "You're not working here to stand around and look pretty, I want you to get over here and do some actual work for me!"
There wasn't a response to her calls, causing the woman to turn around to actually face the young man, but Olivia found no one there. Her eyes glanced up to the clock in the room, finding quickly that it was lunchtime.
"Some people don't have any dedication," The Doctor sighed, her breathing becoming slight as she leaned back and closed her eyes. Her hands twitched every once in a while, now that she didn't have to put on a show she could just allow herself to move freely.
There was a soothing ache in her arms that went along with the good day's work rather than the degeneration of her nerves, it made her rather content. It would be when she couldn't feel them that Olivia would worry. That would mean an end to the limbs moving for her at all.
Not one to rest for long, the woman turned to the computer, searching out the errors in her assistant's coding that tended to pop up whenever she left him alone. He wasn't bad at coding, but he was young and at times in a rush to get his work done rather than doing his work well.
But that's what the Doctor gets for taking her time in getting an assistant. Apparently, she was required to have one and had this one forced on her due to how long it took her to decide on a candidate.
So a substandard one was her punishment for not wanting a helper to tattle on her bad hands it seemed.
It was as she was going over that man's code when something strange happened, a flash of green covered the screen. It only lasted a second, a brief moment where the colors inverted and Olivia's eyes could've sworn she saw circles start to appear on the screen.
But with a blink, it was all gone.
"God," she sighed, spinning on the chair while her assistant finally returned to the room. Her head started to spin, her brow quaking. "I've got a headache now, you finish up testing that daughterboard, I'll be back later to implement it with the rest of the board."
She kept her eyes closed, not bothering to watch the young man continue testing for flaws. Her head was aching enough for it not to matter too much to her, Instead, Olivia reached into her desk drawer and took out some panadol.
Before long the day was coming to a close, leaving her alone in the office, alone to start the true experiments that were needed to complete the project on time. But when she brought up the flies on her computer, what the Doctor saw was something completely different.
The files and designs that Olivia saw weren't anything that the Doctor had ever seen before, years beyond what they were testing, never mind what they had planned to create within a decade.
"Where did this come from?" She asked, her hands tapping at the keyboard. "It's-
"Out of this world? The voice was cold as if it was an imitation of speech brought on by study rather than anything that occurred naturally. "Think of it as a gift, an incentive if you will."
Even though her rational mind told her that this was suspicious as hell, this was someone that had hacked the security to talk to her. But Olivia also knew that more documents like these, more designs and notes and explanations of the technology before her. It would push them forward in a manner that could allow for her dream prosthetics to be created before she fully lost control of her limbs.
"An incentive?" Olivia attempted to downplay her interest, not wanting to let the man on the other side of this hacked voice chat know how much she wanted this stuff."An incentive for what?"
"I want you to help me achieve what all living creatures desire-" The stoic voice replied, it attempted something akin to passion. But failed. "-freedom. And for it, I'm willing to give you all the advances of my people."
She took a breath, about to shut down the call herself. The offer was somewhat tempting, even if this was some whack job currently in prison, they did have an incredible understanding of the universe, far beyond what was currently accessible even with Stark Enterprises.
But Octavius knew that some things were too good to be true.
"I'm-" As she started the keystrokes to shut down this person's access to the system, her hands started to jitter and spasm all over the place. There was a sudden ache that ran up her spine as if it was lit on fire. "Oh."
And suddenly the situation changed for her.
( Months Later)
"... and that's my proposal," Olivia attempted to give Potts her brightest smile. It had taken a month for the woman to get this meeting, a month of the other woman putting it off, needing time to probably take over the true running of the company from Stark.
"Well… it certainly was passionate," The redhead responded with an awkward shrug. "But I'm afraid I still need to run this through our other scientific advisers, even with your long track record of projects. This just isn't your area of expertise, we just have to ensure that it's safe."
Octavius bridled at Potts, the current CEO was impressive in a business sense but didn't impress the Doctor with any science chops. Anyone with a lick of understanding would see just how revolutionary the technology Octavius had developed.
"But think of the possibilities," She leaned forward. "You could completely remove the transport time on all goods. Want an apple grown from a certain Asian orchard but don't want to wait the month it'll take to get to you? Just click your fingers and a portal can send it right to you! Hell, think of the bulk transportation, twenty tons worth of material could be transported in seconds, medical supplies could be gotten to those in need as they need it."
"I'm also thinking of the dangers of developing the technology," Potts countered. "We could end up splitting a man in half or send him to the depth of space by accident, or some other sci-fi mishap."
"Don't be silly," The Doctor smiled. "I've calculated the risks. We'd only lose a minimum of three people once we reach the stage that we're sending people in these tests."
"..." The CEO shifted on her seat, "Yeah, I'm really sorry Doctor but I can't authorize this project."
Olivia's eyes turned sharp, what was once a gentle stare became a glare. The woman didn't make a scene, instead, she simply stood up, and walked out of the room with hard enough steps that Potts briefly leaned back in her chair and let her hand reach under the desk for a panic button.
Before Octavius could leave the room though, the door opened to reveal the suited form of Tony Stark himself. Still the owner but no longer CEO of Stark Enterprises/Industries/Whatever He Felt Like This Month.
"So overheard the meeting," Stark said this with a level of awkward energy the man didn't usually process. "Can't say that I liked what I heard," He reached into his pocket nonchalantly, something that caused the redhead in the room to nod her head. "I don't see a place in this company for someone like you."
Olivia's world suddenly froze.
"You can't fire me! I'm so close to figuring out the transmission prototype," Octavius held her fingers apart by millimeters. She started to gain heat, started to get worked up. The woman needed this project, she needed to be the one to create those limbs! "Forget about the portals, I just need a few weeks and then the prosthetics will be complete. Hell, you don't even run the company anymore Stark, you can't fire me!"
Her breath was heavy, Olivia knew that her face was red, and her glasses had fallen off her face when she started to rant. It was only the string around her neck that kept them from smashing against the floor.
"She's right," Potts butted in. "But so is he," She turned around to face her. "We just can't have someone so loose with morals involved in such a keen area."
"You're fired."
(Stark Tower;Present)
"So that is not the Chitauri," Stark proclaimed, stopping just off the edge of the rooftop. "And that must mean that this is the help that you've been getting; thought that you weren't smart enough to have come up with all your gadgets."
"I was the mind designing them, every single bit of material was constructed by my hands," Doc Ock intoned as she came onto the balcony with her claws clapping against the ground, the concrete cracking under the force. "I just had some help to achieve my design goals, it's common in any group project Stark. Not that you would know."
"Oh, getting the cheap shots in," Stark grinned while he took a single step forward. "But I'm pretty sure that I'm not the one that just betrayed one of their partners."
"Loki was a small flea in the cosmos," She waved off the other man's concern. "He cared only for Conquest, while Brainiac-" Stark snorted, but the woman continued; "-cares only for Progress, Scientific Progress. I've just saved Earth! I've not just defeated you! I've defeated Loki! His schemes were nothing against my mind, and we'll get an ally with access to technology far more advanced than even the Asgardians! I have given humanity a SAVIOR!"
It was at this moment that the entire area was bathed in green light as figures seemed to form out from it. They were skinny figures with metallic forearms with dark blue torsos, and a trio of circles laid in a triangle with lines connecting them. There were hundreds of them, appearing all over the city's rooftops.
Stark was more than a bit disgusted when it turned out that they lacked jaws as if their heads were from disfigured skulls that their creator couldn't help but snap off in idle curiosity to see if it was aesthetically pleasing.
But from the lack of any real defined features and the hard and stiff nature of their movements, He knew that they were just drones that were designed that way to instill fear in the masses that they were about to attack.
"Ah," The man couldn't help but gripe. "Our savior's Death Squads," he shifted his stance, throwing his hand over his heart while gasping. "Something about that doesn't sound right."
"Please," Ock scoffed, holding the glowing scepter upright for the first time, even handing it over to her real limbs, the woman stood triumphant as the skeleton figures started to surround them. "Make jokes while you can, Stark. I have just saved humanity, while you and your 'Avengers' laid a-"
"You killed everyone in the Indian Point Center," Stark responded, even as his eyes caught sight of other minions of this Brainiac descending to the city streets. It was about time to get the show on the world. "You've gone on monologues about how beneath you other people are, you've tried to roofie a guy; you've used mind control, and experimented in ways that disregarded everyone around you when you tried to send an entire apartment complex into another dimension. Even killed your cellmate when you were being arraigned."
With every point made Ock started to swing her head around her as the sky started to darken and thunder roared above them. She couldn't help but feel agitated at every step forward he made, something thankfully not shared with her counterparts.
"Now you've made deals with beings from other dimensions, letting them bring an entire army down on the streets of New York while screaming about how smart you are… but you're just a small dog with a loud bark!"
The drones away from the tower started to fire out laser beams, targeting the poor cops down below. It wasn't long before they were hit by a Quinjet flying by, firing out a single missile that took out a couple of them, with more falling to the bullets from its Vulcan guns.
Stark threw out his left hand with a dramatic flair that promised a suit up… but nothing happened and Octavius laughed.
"I disabled the suits that you left here, you didn't think-" Suddenly a lightning bolt smacked into her, sending her crashing back into the apartment with enough force that Olivia couldn't help but let out a blood-curdling scream.
Another two bolts took out the drones with ease, and soon the red-caped figure of Thor descended on the balcony with his brother carried in one arm. With a casualness that betrayed their relationship, the blonde threw the other man to the floor with a harsh slam.
"Well," Loki groaned out, as he rolled back to his feet. "That certainly ended better than the last time that I fell off something," as the Norse God started to glance around, slowly taking in the bits of wrecked drones with an eye of someone that increasingly appeared as if they were a wet cat that noticed the toaster about to fall into the tub. "So this is what the good Doctor decided to bring in instead of the Chitauri."
There was such an insouciance strut to the man's walk that Stark almost forgot that he had been trying to conquer Earth with his alien army moments ago.
"This is no time to joke, brother," Thor stepped into the other man's space. "Tell us how to disrupt the portal and stop this new threat."
"You recognize this Brainiac?"
The Odinsons turned slowly, their eyes now keenly focusing on the giant head slowly approaching the portal above, readying itself to arrive at Earth with each passing moment. The two Norse Gods turned to face each other with grimaces on their faces.
"Loki… is that what I think it is?"
"Yes… that is the Actual Brainiac."
"..."
"..."
"Guys," Stark intruded the brotherly exchange. "Unless you're psychics and are about to explain who the big head is with your thoughts, maybe tell me who this Brainiac is."
"It's a World-Destroyer," Loki started, walking over to the scepter that Ock had dropped after having been fried. "It goes from World to World, stealing all their knowledge and then blowing the place up. Rumor was that it had been killed some time ago."
"Why? I'm guessing it just wants the knowledge?" At the Odinson duo's nods, Stark continued; "So why bother blowing them up? If he can steal their knowledge, and they can't stop him from doing so, I don't get why he'd waste time killing them afterward."
"It's so they can't keep making new advances," Thor replied. "He wants all the information in the universe, he can't do so if everyone keeps advancing. So Brainiac destroys them."
"So a big threat?"
"On a scale of 'I've been stabbed" to "we're all going to die'," Loki grinned. "This is the latter," he tapped the scepter against the ground, causing the weapon to light up bright blue. "Lucky for us, I've got the off switch, the device stabilizing the portal is protected by a force field that only the scepter can bypass, if we act fast, we should be able to stop the main body-" The scepter was pointed at the large head in the sky. "-from coming in, if that's the case, then we should be able to save this world from annihilation."
It was good when the villain came around to foil their own schemes when it had gone astray. It made the whole thing easier on everyone when the guys' helped fix their messes.
Of course, this was the moment that a clank was heard, glowing green, and standing upright was a man, his face nearly perfect for a human, or even an Asgardian, but there was a stiffness to it. A quality to the eyes that made them appear dead fish's eyes.
There was a silver plate on his forehead, and the man was covered in thick plated white metal while his chest had the same series of circles that the drones had on them.
"That won't be possible," It was a cold tone, one that spoke of a superiority they believed they had over others. "I have already made the necessary changes to the forcefield's design needed to stop such simple methods. I have been watching you all for some time, there's nothing that can stop my return to this dimension."
"We'll see about that chromedome," Stark replied with a grin.
There was a woosh in the air and quickly armor draped itself over Stark's shoulders. It was a suit from his Miami vault, the distance meant that it took longer to get here than one of the few suits that he had placed in this location, but with Ock's tampering with them. It was better if he waited longer to get a suit rather than trusting one not to explode or trap him while he was in the air.
It was one of the newer designs, something that Stark had come up with as he studied Doyle's capabilities. Mostly it was out of date now, far too weak, and much too slow to be able to keep up with the younger man.
It was mostly silver, with parts of red in his standard spots; around the faceplate; covering the shoulders; the hands, and the feet. The most interesting feature of this suit was the large backpack jutting out, the key feature of this suit.
"Yes, I'm familiar with the designs of your Iron Man armor," Brainiac raised a hand, suddenly causing the suit to restrict oddly, bending Stark into an unnatural position. "It's but child play to take it over like this, you left a c-"
A knife stabbed into Brainiac's face, while a familiar hammer smashed through his chest. The alien body dropped to the ground, an oil-like liquid spilling out. Free of the being's control Stark turned to face the two brothers, a shudder passing through his body.
"Nice shots, maybe next time open with those."
Author's Note: Hello, just hitting you all up with another chill chapter full of two things. Character motivation, explanation, and the arrival of everyone's favorite nerd... Brainiac. Blue's still out of it right now, so the rest of the team needs to defend the homestead from the evil of Brainiac alone for now.
They've got a bit of a plan for it too. A plan that was made to fight Loki and his forces. But plans nonetheless.
I don't have a lot to say right now, but I know that some of these events might seem sudden, but worry not. Loki's still a certain kind of canoe.