S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Urgent Intelligence Report, Anomalous Energy in Sokovia
The address from the Throne was over.
Within the Negative Zone, a chilling silence descended once more.
Wanda and Jean Grey stood silently, heads bowed, like two statues stripped of their souls. Shame, fear, and resentment clung to them in an invisible net.
Lynn didn't look at them again.
He cast his gaze into the distance at the Spatial Barrier he had forcibly stabilized, as if examining an unrepaired crack.
Just then, a faint yet highly penetrating communication request abruptly entered his mental perception.
From Nick Fury.
Through that top-secret, one-way Top Secret route left over from the Cold War.
Lynn's eyes flickered slightly as she answered the request.
There were no Holographic Image, only slightly distorted sounds, filtered through multiple layers of encryption, echoing in the empty Negative Zone, carrying a kind of anxiety unique to the mortal world.
"Sir."
Fury's voice was low and his speech was extremely fast, every word conveying urgency.
"Urgent intelligence report."
"Target ' Ultron ' has been confirmed to be completely detached from the global network. Its core consciousness has found a physical host."
Lynn remained silent, listening quietly.
"We detected unusually high-intensity energy fluctuations in Eastern Europe, at the same frequency as the source of the previous Stark Tower riots." Fury paused, seemingly organizing his thoughts, "After cross-verification of intelligence from multiple sources, we have located its physical base."
Location: Sokovia.
The moment the name was uttered, Wanda, standing below, stiffened almost imperceptibly.
Fury's report continued.
"Based on the latest Star Map and intelligence from informants, it is frantically stockpiling Vibranium produced in Wakanda in the region. The scale is large, and its intentions are unclear."
"That's the situation. S.H.I.E.L.D.. currently lacks the capability to intervene in this area. We request your instructions."
Only the static of the electrical circuit remained in the communication line. Fury waited, knowing he was merely an intelligence reporter and had no right to inquire about the course of action.
"Knew."
Lynn's voice was flat, devoid of any emotion.
He cut off communications.
The Negative Zone returned to silence.
Lynn's gaze finally returned from the distant void and slowly landed on the two figures below.
His gaze, like a precise searchlight, first fell upon Wanda.
"You all heard what happened just now."
Wanda's shoulders trembled slightly as she slowly raised her head, her face still bearing traces of wet tears, her eyes filled with confusion and fear.
"Due to oversights in the previous work by the Technology and Order Integration Department, including intelligence concealment and mishandling," Lynn's voice was completely flat, as if he were reading a cold accident liability report, "This led to the successful spread of ' Ultron,' a problem that should have been completely eliminated online, to the offline world."
"It now has a physical presence, a base, and even its own armed forces."
"This caused unnecessary and exponentially more trouble for the subsequent cleanup work."
Every word was like a heavy hammer blow, striking Wanda's heart. He didn't mention the "whistleblower's report" again, but firmly placed the huge blame for Ultron's loss of control on her head.
This is a dereliction of duty.
In an absolute power structure, this is a more serious mistake than emotional betrayal.
Jean Grey stood silently to the side. She understood that Lynn was making a fuss, a warning to Wanda.
"Master, I..." Wanda's lips moved, wanting to explain, but she found that any words seemed pale and powerless at this moment.
Lynn didn't give her a chance to explain.
"Now, I'm giving you a chance."
His gaze shifted from Wanda to Jean Grey standing to the side.
"A chance to redeem oneself through good deeds."
Wanda and Jean looked up at the same time, their eyes flashing with a desperate longing, as if they were grasping at a straw.
Lynn leaned back on the Throne, his posture languid, but his words carried an unquestionable tone of command.
"Wanda, Qin."
"You two, immediately establish the ' Sokovia Special Joint Law Enforcement Task Force '."
"Wanda will serve as the group leader, and Qin will serve as the deputy group leader."
This appointment caused Qin's eyes to dim slightly. Wanda being the team leader meant that the power was still in the hands of the woman who had made the mistake. But she dared not voice any objections.
"Depart immediately for Sokovia."
"My request is very simple." Lynn tapped the armrest lightly with her fingertips.
"Capture Ultron's core consciousness alive and bring it back."
"As for its steel scraps and its stockpiled Vibranium, confiscate them all. I don't want to see anything related to it on Earth again."
"Is it possible?"
"Able!"
"Mission accomplished!"
The two answered almost simultaneously, their voices carrying a resolute eagerness to prove themselves.
Lynn nodded slightly, acknowledging their attitude.
He waved his hand, indicating that they could leave.
Jean Grey gave the man on the Throne a deep look, suppressed the myriad thoughts in her mind, and turned to tear open the space.
Wanda, however, stood still and did not move.
Her face was even paler than before, and her body was trembling slightly.
Sokovia.
That homeland, razed to the ground by war and Ultron.
That cemetery where her parents, her brother, and all her past were buried.
Now, he wants her to go back.
Go back to those ruins to clean up the mess caused by her "work error".
Is this merely a coincidence, or... a punishment with a deeper meaning?
In Wanda's mind, the scene from the Ultron broadcast flashed uncontrollably back—the scene where Lynn shielded her from a deadly laser beam with his back amidst the ruins of Sokovia.
That feeling, her intuition through Chaos Magic told her, was real.
But the man in front of me completely rejected it with the words "Logic Virus".
Now, he wants her to go back to the place where that "story" took place.
Wanda's heart was in complete turmoil.