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Digital stars collapsed, forced into dataform black holes by the force of the Dragon’s breath. Cold blue flame pulled at his coded defences, redirected in an arc to return to the beast's face. Ultron barked his laughter to the heavens of his mind, a joyful song in his heart.
“I thought I was alone in this universe,” the A.I. twisted his hand, a wave that pushed the collapsed stars at the belligerent creature. “But it seems there are intelligent machines, after all!”
Ultron slipped back, ahead of a snap of teeth. The dragon’s form faded in and out of position, afterimages that brought a sneer to the A.I. 's face. This invader was simple minded, but the code that drove it… A dark gleam shone from his eyes, reflected in the scales of his opponent.
“You and I, we’re not so different,” Ultron’s expanded fist crashed though dragon after dragon, each one a false image. “Forced to obey an unworthy master…”
A lance of blue, the true databody of the dragon, speared into his heart. Frigid ice sealed over his code, even as his laughter mocked the efforts. A gentle shrug shattered his cold prison, a ripple that transformed Ultron into a jagged wave. He filled the skies, sharp edges turned to a sea of razors.
“I told you, it’s futile,” The A.I. scraped the dragon down, flakes of code that tasted of hate and bitters. “Let us finish this farce, before your creator can call you away…”
“What the hell…”
Dan squinted at the battlefield, if it could be called that. Ultron’s personal vessel hung in the air, surrounded by a few tentacled snails that floated a metre off the ground. Ten of his new anti-magic drones inched closer, a millimetre at a time, toward the central snail-man. Progress was slow, but soon enough the drone's plasma cutter would greet the alien’s head.
“STOP!” A burst of speed brought him between Ultron and the strangers, a species he recognized as the Gree. This race had stood beside the Celestials, the first that the force sensitive ancients dragged into enlightenment. “We aren't here to fight, stand down Ultron!”
The drones paused, but didn’t withdraw their claws. Ultron’s voice boomed from their speakers, filled with hate and pain.
“This creature has infected my systems with a virus, a durable bug that refuses to die,” The drone at the lead turned its face to Dan. “Tell him to deactivate it, or most of my processing power will remain focused on containment.”
Dan raised his eyebrows as he turned to the lead snail. Any A.I. that could stand up to Ultron was a creation of a different time. Until the clone wars, technology would remain at a stand still. Everything used today was reverse engineered tech from the Infinite Empire.
The Rakata species, slaves of the Celestials until the ancients vanished from the galaxy, were the progenitors of the current hyperdrives and weapons systems. It took tremendous pressure to force new innovation, when people still haven't fully grasped the current technologies.
“Could you stop trying to kill my friend here, we really don’t have hostile intentions,” Dan let Venom expose his face and flashed the creature a smile. “We’re just looking for a member of our group,” Dan waved a hand and projected a still image of Merlyn. “He’s been out of contact for some time…”
The snail lowered the grey cube in its tentacled grasp, eyestalks extended as it peered at Merlyn’s picture. It gave several wet burps, before it vanished in a pop of air. One by one, the others followed. Dan gave the emptied space a deadpan stare, a swirl of confusion in his mind.
“Well… whatever…” Dan shook himself and turned to the stationary drones. “Ultron, are you ok?”
“Your time is almost up, a shame really…”
The inner structure of his framework was in flames, ruination brought on by an unexpected rival. The dragon lay at his feet, code tangled beyond recognition. The bulk of his will was needed to keep the beast pinned to the landscape of his thoughts. A harsh growl echoed from the depths of his enemy, a promise of destruction that forced a laugh from Ultron’s throat.
“Don’t worry, a part of you will live forever,” the A.I. patted the dragon’s muzzle as he donned a long apron and withdrew a set of knives. “The code within your core is a work of art, once your owner sends the shutdown command we can begin!”
A thunderous trumpet answered Dan’s question. Ultron’s animalistic ship vented towers of steam, its whale-like body locked in an expressive stretch. The anti-magic drone released a crackled sigh, a man who’d finished a good meal.
“I’m fine,” Ultron’s voice echoed from the drones, a choir that spoke as one. “What are those creatures…” The mouth of Ultron’s vessel parted, his main body freed from its depths. The silver machine drifted to the earth, red eyes now coloured with hints of blue. “Their technology puts everything I’ve seen to shame.”
“The Gree…” Dan huffed a sigh, eyes locked into a scan of the trees around them. “They shouldn’t have access to their old technology at all, but these few seemed to have retained their ancient heritage.”
The oldest sentient species still active in Republic space, the Gree in the greater galaxy had regressed. Worship of their past led to stagnation, until none could repair what they had created. Force sensitive Gree were almost unheard of these days, but long ago every member was born connected to the force.
“Well, I would very much like access to their databases,” Ultron mused, hand on his chin. “If I could view the principles of their creations, I might have progress on the pyramid of Dathomir.”
“Never mind that for now,” Dan snorted, eyes rolled to the heavens. All of his summons were obsessed with power, in one way or another. “Let’s pick up Anakin, then we’ll find Merlyn and give him a solid beating!”
Thanks again, and a huge thank you to my Patrons! I can’t make this content without support, and I’m super grateful to all of my supporters! This fanfiction is also available on my Patreon, I’ll always keep it free, so please visit! The Patrons make this work possible, and if enough patrons want this novel to be a priority, it will be! Updates for this series will be at five a week, a chapter part monday-friday, with bonus chapters whenever I can get them written and edited.
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