Multiverse: Deathstroke

Chapter 276: Ch.275 So Dark

Chapter 276: Ch.275 So Dark

Zemo is a clever man. If the Red Skull is the epitome of cruelty and violence, then Zemo represents treachery and cunning.

"Baron Zemo" is not just his codename, but his noble title as well. Among Hydra's ranks, he is closer to Hitler, being a hereditary German noble, while the Red Skull was merely a street orphan.

Zemo is a genius in chemistry and physics, excelling in various weapons technology. He's also a master of fencing.

In the comics, there are two generations of Zemos. The one Su Ming is encountering now is likely the first generation. The reason he wears a mask is because of Captain America.

He developed a special glue called Adhesive X, which can bond anything it touches permanently. If he wanted to, he could stick two enemies together or even seal bullets inside an enemy's gun barrel before they were fired.

He uses a special spray gun, similar to a water gun, to apply the adhesive.

Unfortunately, a little over a month ago, while he was improving his adhesive formula, the newly-risen Captain America, still reckless and inexperienced, mistakenly stormed Zemo's lab while searching for the Red Skull. During the chaos, the adhesive flask spilled, and Zemo received a direct dose.

This resulted in his skin, hair, shards of glass, and even the cloth he used to wipe the adhesive fusing on a molecular level, bonding permanently. His face became irreparably disfigured.

He had no choice but to don a mask, bidding farewell to his once handsome, blonde-haired, blue-eyed appearance, and marking Captain America as his mortal enemy.

If Captain America constantly chases after the Red Skull, Zemo now devotes his life to pursuing Captain America. Wherever Steve Rogers goes, Zemo will follow.

Like a spider weaving a web, he lays intricate traps for Steve, a black-hearted and obsessive relationship, entangled without end.

But this time, instead of the star-spangled uniform walking into his trap, an unexpected guest had arrived.

Su Ming hovered in midair, the Magic Cloak floating and adjusting his altitude. He turned his gaze downward and began descending.

Zemo's traps were often layered, one following the next. If the first failed, another would immediately follow. And sure enough...

Before Su Ming could even finish his thought, a large swarm of flying saucers emerged from behind the other airships, speeding toward him and firing their energy weapons.

Sigh, "I knew it... Cloak, you know what to do, right?"

Of course, the cloak knew. After all this time, it had grown accustomed to Su Ming's habits.

What else could they do in a situation like this? Dive into the sewers.

The cloak immediately sent Su Ming into a steep nosedive, leveling off just a few meters above the ground before speeding along the streets.

The flying saucers gave chase, but they weren't as nimble as the cloak. Some of the closer ones ended up crashing into the ground like flying discs stuck in the dirt.

The impact hurled chunks of the street into the air, and houses along the roadside were buried as debris and mud flew up, leaving the terrified faces of hiding Parisians exposed.

Though the saucers were sturdy and didn't explode, their pilots were surely dead in these crashes.

German soldiers littered the streets, and as Su Ming zipped past them, they opened fire. But aside from a few sparks flying off his armor, it did no real damage.

As Su Ming weaved left and right down the streets, the lights blurred into colorful ribbons, and the buildings on either side sped by in a rush.

The high-speed chase gave Su Ming the thrill of flying a fighter jet, except this jet was fully autonomous.

With his sharp dynamic vision, he even had the time to appreciate the Germans' astonished faces below. Their various expressions of shock and confusion amused him, especially as they were blown away by the pursuing saucers, tumbling head over heels and losing their helmets like they were caught in a typhoon.

It wasn't long before the cloak had enough fun. With a sharp turn downward, Su Ming crashed through a manhole cover and dove into the sewers.

The saucers, unable to follow, hovered above the streets. The moisture on the road evaporated from the saucers' heat, making the scene appear distorted and surreal.

Su Ming didn't care about the enemy's frustration. The cloak, familiar with the underground network, sped through the tunnels, eventually finding a path back to the underground catacombs and the guerrilla headquarters.

Everything looked the same as before, with bones surrounding the dimly lit room.

The Howling Commandos were huddled together in one corner of the hall, sleeping against the wall. Only Fury and Peggy were awake, sitting at a small table under the light of an oil lamp, discussing something.

The people Su Ming had sent out had not yet returned, and Monarch was still resting.

Carrying the stench of blood, Su Ming strode deeper into the ossuary. He needed to speak with the leader of the guerrillas to gather intelligence.

On his way, he generously distributed cigarettes and candies he had scavenged from the corpses, some of which were still stained with blood.

The guerrilla fighters didn't care. They wiped the blood on their pants and immediately divvied up the treats on the table, laughing and thanking Su Ming for his gifts. They called him "savior" in French, gathering in small groups to smoke.

Some, more prudent and with families above ground, carefully pocketed their cigarettes, planning to trade them for food on the black market the next day.

A single cigarette could feed a family of three for a day.

Amid the laughter and gratitude, Su Ming naturally sat in front of the guerrilla commander, receiving the information he sought.

No matter how much of a tactical genius one is, gathering local intelligence in an unfamiliar place is best left to the locals.

The guerrillas didn't know Baron Zemo by name, but their eyes and ears had spotted a German officer with a purple hood. A bakery owner had seen this high-ranking German official staying in a small house, and after passing through several hands, this information reached the catacombs.

Su Ming pieced the puzzle together. Zemo must have arrived in Paris shortly after Steve's group.

However, before Zemo could fully set his trap, the Red Skull had already neutralized Steve.

Zemo, unwilling to give up, continued with his plan, unaware of how badly injured Steve was or what his team's objective was.

But he knew Captain America was in Paris and wouldn't be able to escape.

As expected, chaos erupted that night. Attacks targeting German logistics across the city coincided with strikes on all the anti-aircraft positions.

Zemo quickly deduced that his opponent's target must be the airborne laboratory.

"No doubt about it, it's Captain America. I'll kill him... I'll kill him!"

Zemo became feverish with excitement.

So, he mistook Su Ming's plan for an SSR mission and set his trap in the skies. He knew Captain America could fly a plane, but without a landing platform on the airships, Steve would have to abandon his means of transportation and lose his escape route.

Zemo had everything prepared.

If Steve had fallen into that trap, he wouldn't have died, but he'd certainly be in a world of pain.

Su Ming, with the Magic Cloak, could safely land and shake off pursuers. Steve, however, would've had no such luck. Even if the bombs didn't kill him, falling from the sky and being shot at by saucers certainly would have.

Sigh "What a pain..."

Su Ming glanced at the unconscious Captain America, sighing inwardly.

The Red Skull and Zemo had nothing to do with Namor's fragments. They just wanted to mess with Captain America.

But because of this obsession, Zemo had ordered the laboratory airship to remain hidden, believing that to be Steve's goal. He wanted to play a game of cat and mouse.

As for the Red Skull, there was a high chance he had already left, though it was possible he was lurking somewhere, waiting to strike.

Su Ming, Peggy, and Fury had their concerns about killing the Red Skull, but the Red Skull had no such qualms about killing Captain America. Now that Steve was injured, would the Skull pass up such an opportunity?

Two of Hydra's nine leaders had already appeared here. Besides Strucker, who was in Japan, could the rest of those lunatics show up as well?

What frustrated Su Ming most was this: Steve, in his short time with the SSR, had managed to provoke nearly every Hydra leader.

If there was anyone Su Ming least wanted to see, it was the woman codenamed "Viper."

Compared to the other Hydra leaders, Ophelia Sarkissian's expertise was especially dangerous for underground guerrilla warfare.

Codenamed after a snake, she specialized in poison gases, venom, and urban and subterranean combat.

It was almost like a natural talent—she thrived in any sewer environment and preferred operating in dark, damp places.

While Su Ming himself wouldn't have trouble dealing with her, the guerrilla fighters, the injured Steve, and other ordinary people wouldn't be able to outrun her specially engineered toxins.

So, the best plan would be to resolve the situation in Paris before Hydra raised all its heads.