CHAPTER 106 - THE DAY OF THE ACCORDS I

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Today is the day the meeting concerning the signing of the Sokovia Accords kicks off and quite a few countries have sent in their representatives but none of that mattered to me right now.

Some of my teammates were still a bit worried about it as we could be branded as enemies of the state depending on what they decided on and whether or not it stood against our decision. 

For me? I couldn't care less about it. Leave politics for those interested in it. 

I have already dug up gigabytes of blackmail material on over 90% of the dignitaries that are in attendance and depending on what they vote for, they'll either be soared or the internet will completely ruin them. 

That aside, I have been expecting Selene to be on my ass by now but it's been a month and I haven't seen a peep from her. 

I am actually thankful for her taking her time and allowing me to focus on other things but that didn't also seem to work out. 

You won't know how hard it is to find a single bacteria cell in the midst of 7 billion+ people until you start to look. 

There's just no way to track the dude. I found the dude named John Sublime but that was also a dud as well. And the worst part is that you won't even know if a body inhabited by Sublime walks in front of you. 

"You are not following up on the hearing?" Bruce asked as he came into the lounge where I am currently watching a series. 

"Don't need to. It won't matter in the end even if I did. Better to just let them do their thing and I'll respond in wise."

He let out a strained 'ha ha' before plopping down on one of the chairs with a weary sigh. 

"You look bleak, well more bleak than you usually do?" I asked out of curiosity. 

"Really funny." He said while laying back with a hand over his face and released another weary sigh. 

I continued watching my series for the next thirty minutes until he decided that he could no longer keep it in and started telling me what got him down so much. 

"Wow, that's one fucking conundrum you've got yourself in right there." I remarked. 

"Tell me about it." He said with a dry tone. 

The universe decided to fuck with green boy once again and where worked with Sarah on new medical breakthroughs just so happens to have a person old Bruce thought he had nothing to do with anymore. 

Betty Ross. 

I don't even want to imagine how awkward finding that out must've been for Bruce when he came face to face with his old flame for the first time. 

"What are you going to do?" I asked. 

"I really have no idea. You are the one with the internet for a brain, can't you come up with a solution for me?" He drawled out. 

I switched to another episode with a blink of my eyelid and snickered at Bruce's whining. "Do you really want to receive relationship advice from Google?"

He groaned with heavy frustration and threw his hands in the air. 

"Where's Sarah?"

"She's at her lab with a group of Widows with her. There's been five cases of attempted assassinations so far. Somehow I pity those guys."

It's a no-brainer that some parties would be butt hurt by her discovery and try to eliminate the rising competition, especially when she had full ownership of her research and findings. 

Well, they tried and that's all that matters. Not that it really does when they find themselves against trained Widows only to find out too late that the mission was not worth dying so quickly. 

"I thought you and Natasha had a thing going on?" They did but I didn't focus on it so maybe I missed something? 

"We did…Or maybe tried to."

"Let me guess, you backed out when you were supposed to push forward." I said. Knowing Bruce's character and how severely low his self esteem was, I am not really surprised. 

I didn't expect something like this but I'm not surprised by it either. 

"And now that Betty is around you don't know what to do, huh?"

"It's like my head is being split in five different places. Gahh! I hate this!" He screamed out in anger and my hand was already prepped up to blast him away if he transformed. 

"Bruce?" 

He took a deep breath and gave me a thumbs up. "I'm good, thanks."

Just at that moment, Natasha and Steve walked in and if not for the info dump that Bruce just gave me, I never would have known that they were on a rough patch. 

But it wasn't my place to say so I filed it away and shelved it. 

"Pokémon?" Natasha pointed at the holographic screen where an intense battle was going on. 

"I had limited options to choose from, trust me." I said and shooed her away to focus on my entertainment. 

"You know the hearing is already underway, right?" Steve repeated the same question Bruce asked me so I gave him the same answer I gave Bruce. 

"It doesn't matter at the end of it all. It all comes down to how their final decision stacks up against our choice."

Just for the sake of it, I projected another holographic visual of what was currently going on inside the closed doors and they still haven't touched upon the main topic. 

Knowing all about how these sort of hearings and how they went and seeing it with a panoramic view was something else. 

"I guess they are still divvying up Steve's shield. 20 says it's Bruce next before Tony." I placed a wager but no one bothered picking it up because they were just dumbfounded watching them argue about something that absolutely didn't matter, at least to us watching it. 

"I'd rather use my time to try finishing this series than wasting it on that." I commented and resumed my pastime. 

"So we have to wait for three days before they can come to a decision over something they could just vote for? Sounds like a waste of time." Natasha remarked. 

"That is a sentiment Doom also agrees on."

I cranked my head a little higher to look at the new intrusion. 

Steve and Natasha were already facing Doom with hands held out as the armored man descended through the floor height open windows. 

"I thought you were at the hearing?" I asked even though I already knew the answer. 

"A mere replacement. Doom only accepted the invitation to this sham because something caught Doom's interest. You." He said with his hands behind his back as he stared down at me. 

"I'm sorry but you don't have permission to be here. As a monarch of a country and one on official visit, this could be counted as invasion and disregarding the protection given to you by the country as a foreign guest." Natasha quoted with a rigid expression on her face as she watched all of Doom's movements. 

I finally sat up since it is quite clear at this point that I can't resume my series until the reason for Doom's visit is taken care of. 

"Doom doesn't care for such threats." He said without straining his eyes from me. 

I really don't know what he wants so I decided to ask. "Why are you looking for me? I don't believe we've ever been acquainted at any time."

Damn, this guy really knows how to be intense even when doing nothing. Like, he just stood there but I can feel Natasha and Steve's muscle straining in preparation for any sudden movement. 

Thankfully he finally decided to speak after the dramatic suspense. "The energy index that fully assimilated your mechanics and bionics to a seamlessly working nervous system. I want it."

Not just me, but even Bruce was floored by this guy's outrageous request. 

He was outright demanding the Mind Stone. 

"Sorry, but I can't give the gem to you. It's integral for my continued existence." I lied through my teeth but there is no way he knows that. 

Even if he did, there is no way I'm giving him an Infinity Stone just because he asked. 

"Then ask for a suitable compensation and Doom will consider it." He said, not fazed a bit by my refusal but I still refused it. 

"I can't. The gem was found by the Avengers and it is the Avengers to safekeep. There is no equivalent compensation for the gem." 

His eyes that have never left me since the beginning seemed to narrow for a bit before going back to normal. "Is that your final decision?"

"Yes. We can't just give it to you. That thing is too dangerous in the wrong hands for us to take any chances with it." Steve was the one who replied to Doom's final question. 

We just continued there in a face off until Doom decided that he was done with his shakedown and turned around to leave. 

"You will be hearing from Doom soon." He left us with that and flew outside before disappearing. 

Well time to continue my series. 

"Vision, do you know what he might need the stone for?" Natasha asked. 

I guess not.