Multiverse: Deathstroke

Chapter 42: Ch.41 Plants

Barbara was startled by Su Ming's description of the situation. If the White Light spread uncontrollably, it would indeed be terrifying.

If all plants and animals couldn't be killed, then there would be nothing for humans to eat. Yet, they themselves wouldn't die from hunger either. It would be a state of perpetual starvation, an agonizing thought that made her feel it would be better to die.

Su Ming, on the other hand, was still pondering why a Black Lantern Battery would appear here, paying little attention to the expressions of the others.

Vicki Vale was instructing Pete to take extensive footage of the zombie corpses covering the floor, completely disregarding Pete's retching. The burly man had long since vomited out everything in his stomach and was now dry heaving.

Cindy walked over to Su Ming and leaned against the wall beside him, her gun spinning in her hand as she caressed the grip with its crisscross pattern.

"So what about the Black Light? You put that container away earlier; what can it do?"

"The Black Light represents death. It's actually pretty straightforward. It can turn all deceased beings into zombie-like forms, becoming slaves of Nekron," Su Ming said, patting Barbara on the shoulder to snap her out of her daze and instructing her to open the door. He continued, "Even those who have died and been resurrected would be immediately controlled by the Black Light, returning to death. As for its other uses... I have a hypothesis, but I need to confirm it."

"But those zombies earlier seemed mindless. I don't know who this Nekron you mentioned is, but it's clear they weren't under control," Cindy said, kicking a headless corpse as black blood oozed from its chest.

Su Ming noticed there were no Black Lantern insignias on the zombies' chests, which indeed suggested they weren't under control and were simply acting on instinct.

"I don't know either. This battery shouldn't even exist, but the world is full of secrets," he said, looking at the bodies scattered around the room and holstering his gun. "Now we're dealing with creations of magic or some kind of exotic energy. We need to be careful."

"Let them come," Cindy said disdainfully. She was curious to see what formidable creatures these mad scientists could come up with.

The door opened once more, revealing a room completely transformed. The former experimental tools had disappeared, replaced by a verdant world of greenery. Moss covered the floor and walls, vines and fallen leaves were scattered everywhere, and a giant tree grew in the center, its canopy illuminated by high-intensity lights simulating sunlight.

Before they entered, this room must have been dark, and without light, plants shouldn't have been able to grow. Yet, here was this massive tree.

There were no visible animals, but on the ground, mushrooms and vibrant flowers grew together, creating an eerie atmosphere.

"The humidity has increased. Is this a lab simulating a rainforest environment, or a place to rest like a park?" Cindy mused, extending her hand to stop the others from entering and letting them wait by the door.

"Unlikely. The room next door is a zombie research area. It's a bit too stomach-churning to think this is where the scientists had lunch breaks, considering Black Lantern zombies also eat flesh," Su Ming replied, firing a test shot at the tree.

Wood chips flew as the bullet hit, creating a hole. But the tree seemed to come alive, trembling slightly as its surrounding vines recoiled and then lashed out at the pair like whips.

A deep gouge appeared on the metal floor between them. The force was stronger than that of Brice's dinosaur toys.

The vines moved like tentacles sprouting from the lush canopy, flailing through the air, trying to ensnare them.

"Is this the Swamp Thing's brother? A Forest Monster?" Cindy joked as she and Su Ming rolled to either side, evading the attacks. As she'd mentioned earlier, she didn't like dealing with plants because she hadn't brought any herbicide.

"Stay back!" Su Ming shouted to the three behind them, telling them to retreat to the previous room. He then dodged another vine's attempt to ensnare him. "It's a plant, but herbicide isn't its only weakness."

Cindy drew her knife and severed a vine, but more vines surged toward her. She could only dodge for now while continuing to shout and coordinate with Su Ming.

"I know! All plant energy comes from the Green. Plants need sunlight and water to grow. Destroying the roots would kill it quickly. The vines and the tree are in a symbiotic relationship, and fire counters plants. But what's this thing's specific weakness?"

"We don't have Hellfire magic or fire-based superpowers," Su Ming responded as the vines kept after them. "But plants shouldn't have eyes! How does it know where we are? Think about Poison Ivy."

Cindy understood. Poison Ivy had previously used vibrations to track their movements. This plant was likely using vibrations to pinpoint their location as well.

If they could create a disturbance greater than their movements or heartbeats, it would effectively confuse the tree and its vines.

"I got it! I'll create the vibrations, you take it out!"

Cindy pulled two grenades from her suit, tossing them into opposite corners of the room. Two seconds later, a massive explosion rocked the room.

The vines that had been chasing them suddenly froze like snakes, quivering slightly before heading toward the source of the explosions.

Su Ming's hypothesis was correct: the plant had no eyes.

He immediately changed his course, avoiding the vines on the ground and heading straight for the tree itself. Cindy stayed on the perimeter, creating more disturbances to draw the vines' attention.

At the base of the tree was a patch of soil, dotted with mushrooms and small flowers encircling the massive trunk like a garland.

The bark was rugged, and embedded within were bits of metallic equipment, only their edges visible, overgrown by nature. They were the remnants of scientific endeavors overtaken by natural growth.

The roots were thick and sprawling, each one exposed above ground thicker than Su Ming's thigh. Who knew how deep they went underground?

Su Ming didn't have time to ponder the age of the plant. He took out some explosives from his thigh pouch and carefully placed them around the tree's roots.

Not far away, Cindy was still buying time.

Setting the detonator, Su Ming quickly retreated and signaled Cindy to find cover.

A loud explosion followed, and the tree crashed down. Countless green leaves and branches scattered, dirt and wood chips flying everywhere.

A stream of green sap splashed onto Su Ming's shoulder armor, releasing a strange grassy scent. He ignored it, keeping his eyes fixed on the twitching vines through the smoke.

After what seemed like a final struggle, all the vines went limp and fell to the ground.

The two moved to the center of the room, meeting at the shattered remains of the tree.

The explosion had left the area in shambles. A large hole gaped in the floor, but below was only more dirt, not a path to the lower levels.

The upper half of the tree had been blasted away, revealing its cross-section filled with wriggling, worm-like vines. These vines had been parasitic within the tree, and the explosion had severed them, causing them to lose control.

"It's like an electric cable wrapped in a wooden casing, with copper wires inside," Cindy remarked as she examined the tree's remains, first checking underground and then inspecting the severed trunk.

Su Ming sighed. This thing wasn't particularly strong, but it wasn't weak either. It was an effective weapon against opponents with melee capabilities. If he hadn't had Deathstroke's speed, getting hit or entangled by it wouldn't have ended well.

He turned to Cindy and said, "The tree's no longer an issue, but we've made quite a commotion. Falcone must be somewhere below, and he's sure to notice us."

Cindy checked the remaining explosives she had. Despite losing most of their arsenal in the Jeep explosion, they still had enough on hand. Even if they only had knives, they could manage; it would just take more effort.

"Getting discovered was only a matter of time. I'm curious what he'll do when he knows we're here."