Joint enforcement to lure the snake out: the Mutants Management Committee's mastery
Within the Negative Zone, deathly silence is the only dominant tone.
After Lynn left, the ultimatum-like word "unqualified" hung like an invisible noose around the necks of Hela, Wanda, and Jean Grey.
The previous tense, uncompromising atmosphere has vanished. In its place is a heavier, more oppressive collective anxiety.
They understood the weight of the words "unsatisfactory" better than anyone else.
This means that in the eyes of their superiors, their departments and they themselves will be labeled as "incompetent".
Hela stood there with her arms crossed, her face grim. She was used to crushing problems with absolute power, but the problem now was that she couldn't even find a trace of the enemy. No matter how large the Undead Legion was, it couldn't sift through the entire earth like sand.
Such a commotion would be too great, and if it caused any incidental damage to people's livelihoods, it would be a stain on their performance evaluation.
Wanda, on the other hand, seemed somewhat agitated. Her Chaos Magic could reshape reality, but only if it had an Anchor, a lesion to exploit. What the leadership wanted was a "living sample," not a mass of distorted energy data.
"Forty-eight hours is like finding a needle in a haystack." Hela scoffed, breaking the silence. Her gaze swept over the other two. "What are your thoughts?"
While the question sounds like a request for advice, it actually carries a hint of shifting blame.
Wanda pursed her lips and didn't reply. She was still annoyed by the conflict on the streets of Manhattan and didn't want to get involved again.
Jean Grey remained quiet.
Only then did she slowly raise her head, her gaze lingering on Hela and Wanda's faces.
"Conventional investigation methods are too inefficient and may not even lead to catching the target." Qin's voice was calm, as if she were presenting a report. "Since the other party can 'cross the border,' it means they have a method of movement that we don't yet understand. Passively waiting will only waste time."
Hela frowned. "What does Chairman Yiqin mean?"
"Since we can't find the snake," Qin said calmly, "Then let it come out on its own."
Lure the snake out of its hole.
Hela and Wanda's eyes both fell on Jean.
"A specific plan," Hela stated succinctly.
"The other party appeared last time to 'prune' an accident caused by a car crash. This shows that their working mechanism is to target and eliminate certain 'abnormal fluctuations'." Qin's thinking was very clear, completely following the problem-solving logic of the business department.
"Therefore, we only need to create a large enough 'anomaly,' a bait that they cannot ignore and must deal with."
Ada asked, "What kind of anomaly? Like Ultron's?"
"No," Qin shook her head. "Too much noise would easily get out of control, which doesn't meet the leadership's requirements of 'precision' and 'discretion.' Besides, a crisis of Ultron's caliber would take us time to handle ourselves; we can't wait for them to take the bait."
She paused for a moment, then stated her core solution.
"Our department, the Mutants Management Committee, has a special case in its archives. An unregistered Mutants possesses the ability to unconsciously perceive the flow of time within a small area."
Hela and Wanda both understood.
This is an exclusive resource available only to Qin's department.
"My plan is for me to personally guide this Mutants to experience a sudden, controlled surge of time perception at specific coordinates within a short period of time." Jean looked at them and began assigning tasks. "It's like throwing a precisely placed stone into a calm lake; the ripples will inevitably spread to the shore."
"This bait is enough to lure them out."
"The plan sounds feasible." Hela's expression softened slightly. "What is our Stability Maintenance Office responsible for?"
"The perimeter." Qin's gaze shifted to Hela. "Once the target enters the designated location, I need the armed forces of the Stability Maintenance Office to immediately establish an absolute physical blockade. We cannot allow the target any possibility of escape, nor can we allow the aftermath of the capture operation to spread into public areas."
Haila nodded. This was her area of expertise.
"What about the Department of Technology?" Wanda asked.
"Signal." Jean's gaze shifted to Wanda. "Their transmission method likely involves quantum technology or even higher. I need the Department of Technology to construct a full-band signal shielding field around the decoy area, specifically targeting interference with quantum communication and space jumps. I need to ensure that once the target enters, it becomes an Information Island, unable to call for external assistance."
The division of labor is clear, and the responsibilities are well-defined.
One was responsible for acting as bait, one for closing the door, and one for disconnecting the internet.
This is a standard, cross-departmental joint enforcement action plan.
Hela and Wanda exchanged a glance.
They all understood that accepting this plan meant that the lead and credit for this operation would fall on Jean Grey and her Mutants Management Committee.
But they had no choice.
The 48-hour time limit was like Sword of Damocles hanging over our heads.
If the task isn't completed, everyone is deemed "unqualified."
"I have no objection," Hela said first, her tone decisive.
"Okay." Wanda nodded as well.
Faced with absolute performance pressure, temporary gains and losses become less important.
"Alright." Qin's face showed no trace of pride. "Without further ado, let's make arrangements immediately."
Three powerful wills began to work in unison with unprecedented efficiency.
Jean Grey personally retrieved the young Mutants codenamed "Pendulum" from the Mutants Management Committee's special archives and brought him to the Negative Zone. Under her mental guidance, the boy began to unleash his weak yet highly unstable sense of time at the coordinates provided by Gwen Stacy, located in an abandoned factory in the suburbs of Manhattan.
Almost simultaneously, Hela's Undead Legion silently appeared outside the factory.
Instead of their usual murderous aura, they silently constructed three layers of blockade, like the most elite special forces. Each Undead Soldiers became a death node, completely surrounding the area, making any physical entry or exit impossible.
At an even higher level, Wanda floats in mid-air.
Scarlet mist emanated from her fingertips, not transforming into a violent attack, but rather like an invisible and intangible, intricate spiderweb, layer upon layer, enveloping the entire area.
Spatial parameters were quietly modified, Quantum Tunnel were forcibly blocked, and all possibilities of faster-than-light communication were completely severed within this Scarlet "absolute silence zone."
These three women, who once nearly turned the universe upside down in their struggle for favor, are now driven by the common goal of "meeting their targets," displaying terrifying efficiency and professionalism.
They transformed a cross -Dimension conflict capable of causing cosmic upheaval into a textbook example of a well-organized grassroots law enforcement operation.
Everything is ready.
The three concealed themselves, waiting quietly like the most patient hunters.
Time passed second by second.
Inside the abandoned factory, beads of sweat appeared on "Pendulum's" forehead. The flow of time he perceived was becoming increasingly chaotic, as if it were about to spiral out of control.
Just as Wanda was about to intervene and stabilize his mental state...
A ripple suddenly appeared in the air at the center of the factory.
The ripples spread like water, initially barely perceptible, but quickly becoming intense.
Immediately afterwards, an orange halo appeared out of thin air and rapidly expanded outwards.
A massive, orange portal, shimmering with strange Runes, slowly opened at the very center of the decoy's coordinates.