A Late-Night Disciplinary Detention by the Rules, a Special Advisor's Downfall
The Special Alloy door twisted inward, like a crumpled piece of waste paper.
The light from the doorway was fragmented by several figures, and a cold red light pierced through the billowing smoke and dust, precisely piercing Ravonna's brow.
Ravonna's finger was still hovering above the metal cover, not falling.
The astonishment on her face lasted less than a second before being quickly replaced by a calm that was a mixture of arrogance and bewilderment. She slowly straightened up, her gaze passing over the fully armed Enforcement Team and landing directly on the woman in the lead.
Natasha.
She was wearing a tight-fitting black combat suit, holding no weapons, and simply stood there calmly.
"The Internal Affairs Inspection Office?" Ravonna's voice was steady, with a hint of barely perceptible sarcasm. "I don't recall this department being part of the Management Committee's organizational structure."
She paused, then her tone hardened.
"Furthermore, I am a special consultant for TVA, and according to the bilateral agreement, you have no right to take any coercive measures against me."
This is the source of her confidence as a personnel dispatched by her superiors, and what she considers her strongest safeguard.
Natasha neither refuted nor raised her voice.
"Now we have it."
She took a thin Data Pad out of her combat uniform pocket; the screen lit up, its soft light illuminating her calm face.
She turned the Data Pad toward Ravonna.
A bold, black-lettered title line stands out prominently at the top of the screen.
Notification Regarding the Request for TVA Special Advisor Comrade Ravonna Renslayer to Cooperate with Internal Security Review
The main body of the notification was concise and clear, but every word carried undeniable weight.
At the very bottom of the document was a flamboyant electronic signature.
Lynn.
Ravonna's pupils contracted almost imperceptibly.
"An internal notice can't bind me," she said coldly. "My position is directly under TVA, and I'm only accountable to those He Who Remains. Director Lynn has no authority to investigate me."
Natasha seemed to have anticipated that she would say that.
"The Director's Order does indeed only apply to staff within the Management Committee." She nodded in agreement, "But this document is acceptable."
Natasha swiped her finger across the screen, and the scene changed.
A new document was presented to Ravonna.
"Memorandum of the Cross-Dimension Coordination Office"
Ravonna's expression finally changed.
This memorandum, jointly signed by Lynn and the He Who Remains after that tea party at the End of Time, forms the legal basis for the establishment of the Coordination Office. As a special consultant appointed by TVA, her status and authority are derived from this document.
"Regarding authority," Natasha's voice was unhurried, as if reciting a legal provision she knew by heart, "According to Article 7, Annex III, ' Reciprocal Supervision Clause,' of the ' Cross-Dimension Coordination Office Working Memorandum' jointly signed by both of us..."
Her voice echoed in the silent room, each word striking Ravonna's heart with clarity.
"... If any member of the coordination office is suspected of endangering the core security of one party, the other party, upon issuing a written notice, has the right to initiate an independent investigation and may take necessary measures such as ' Temporary Communications Block ' to ensure that the investigation is not subject to external interference."
Natasha raised her eyes and looked at Ravonna, whose face was gradually turning pale.
"Everything we're doing right now is within the rules. Consultant Ravonna, this is a compliant Internal Security Review, not an arrest."
She deliberately emphasized the word "compliance".
Ravonna fell silent.
The carefully constructed Bastion of identity she had built were completely undermined and crumbled when the other party presented a different, higher-level set of rules, which had been jointly established by her own side.
She finally understood that the trap had been set the moment Lynn approved the establishment of the Inspection Office. And she had walked into it step by step over seven days, until now, there was no turning back.
"Please, Comrade Advisor." Natasha stepped aside and gestured for them to proceed.
Two tall Enforcement Team stepped forward and stood on either side of Ravonna, but did not immediately take coercive measures; instead, they used an invisible pressure to lock her in place.
This is procedure, and it's also about propriety.
Ravonna took a deep breath and glanced one last time at the metal cover hidden by the carpet.
She knew it was too late.
She slowly raised her hands, indicating that she was giving up resistance.
"I'll go with you."
An Enforcement Team stepped forward and prepared to confiscate the Personal Terminal on her wrist with standard movements. This was the first step in the investigation process, cutting off all possibility of external communication.
Just as the Enforcement Team's finger was about to touch the terminal, Ravonna's body was gently pushed to the side by another officer.
This action is standard and a routine procedure when controlling a suspect. Its purpose is to adjust the suspect's body posture to facilitate subsequent escort and prevent sudden resistance.
It was this action that, in less than half a second, completely blocked Natasha's view with the body of the Enforcement Team.
A perfect blind spot.
Ravonna's face still wore that calm, resigned expression.
But in that unseen corner, her thumb pressed down with all her might into an extremely inconspicuous groove on the side of the terminal.
There was no sound or light effects.
The terminal's screen flashed a barely perceptible blue light before going completely dark, as if it had exhausted its last bit of energy.
The Enforcement Team successfully removed her terminal and placed it in a specially made Signal-Shielding Bag.
Everything seemed to fall into place so naturally.
Natasha watched as Ravonna was "invited" out the door by two teammates, and felt that something was wrong, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it.
She walked to the center of the room, glanced at the Formatting Device that hadn't yet been activated, and then gave the order.
"The equipment was sealed off on-site, packed up, and taken away to the Department of Technology for mirror analysis."
"Yes."
Meanwhile, at the TVA headquarters, a place so remote it defies description.
At the highest alert center of the Discipline Inspection Committee, rows of indicator lights representing countless Timeline and the status of dispatched personnel were flashing green in an orderly manner.
Suddenly, one of the indicator lights located in the core monitoring area, codenamed "Negative Zone–Coordination Office–Renslayer," turned from green to the most glaring red without any warning.
The alarm did not sound.
This level of alert will not trigger any audio or visual prompts; it will simply generate an encrypted query letter with the highest priority.
The inquiry letter contained only one line of text.
"The disappearance of a high-ranking personnel on assignment abroad has triggered a ' Final Protocol,' prompting a request for the Discipline Inspection Commission to initiate Cross-Dimensional Inquiry Procedure."
A few seconds later, the inquiry letter, along with all the legal exemptions granted to high-ranking personnel by TVA, was packaged into a new document and rapidly transmitted across countless time and space towards the Negative Zone.