Multiverse: Deathstroke
Chapter 280: Ch.279 Naming

Chapter 280: Ch.279 Naming

Everything that had transpired in the Reich Chancellery in Berlin was known only to the two people present. Meanwhile, Su Ming was in Paris, peeking through a manhole cover from the sewers to observe the chaotic streets above.

Everywhere he looked, there was chaos—black leather boots, metal prosthetics, tank tracks, and wheels rolling past him in all directions. He quietly retreated back into the sewer.

"The density of these patrols... did the Germans take the wrong medicine?" Su Ming muttered.

In fact, this was just standard procedure. After the chaos he had caused earlier, many French resistance fighters had joined in. Even if they couldn't kill German soldiers or blow up their supplies, some citizens just felt the need to spit into the Germans' wells.

That was the mentality of the Parisians—and that's exactly what they were doing.

Now, half the city had joined in the unrest, so what could the Germans do? They had no choice but to call in 200,000 troops to patrol the city.

It wasn't just the Germans—the puppet government's forces and police were also out in full force, trying to maintain order.

Chaos and madness were everywhere.

If Joker had seen this situation, he would have been overjoyed. However, this chaos wasn't helpful to Su Ming's plan. With everything in disarray, who would watch his performance? And how could he get word to Zemo quickly?

After a moment's thought, Su Ming decided to replace Cable. He had seen their team earlier, engaging the Germans at the Eiffel Tower. They were probably still there.

He dropped down from the vertical shaft, using his cloak to maneuver through the sewers. Su Ming absently rubbed his chest.

"You've developed some self-awareness now. Should I give you a name? How about 'Little Black'?"

The symbiote immediately showed signs of melting, as if it had lost all strength. Su Ming guessed it didn't like that name.

"Alright, then how about 'Little White'? It's an auspicious name—no harm in injuries, heatstroke, or overeating. It's a lucky name."

The symbiote began melting even faster, exposing the sacred armor beneath. Clearly, it still didn't like the name.

Su Ming realized that symbiotes, like other symbiotes, preferred more aggressive-sounding names, like Carnage, Lash, or Riot.

Symbiotes did have a penchant for darker, more intense names.

"I'm terrible at naming things," Su Ming thought as he tried to recall the names of future symbiotes, hoping to give his own symbiote a name that would satisfy it.

At that moment, a faint thought entered Su Ming's mind—it was the first time the symbiote had clearly expressed its own desire.

Su Ming was slightly moved by this, as it proved the symbiote was truly developing its own thoughts. It had begun thinking about something as personal as its name, a sign that its intelligence was rapidly increasing. Eventually, it might surpass that of the average human.

Kamar-Taj had been researching symbiotes for some time, but they never considered that such a terrifying species needed to parasitize intelligent beings to reach their full potential.

Humans, aliens, gods—they made great hosts. Yeti? Not so much.

The symbiote had chosen a name for itself—"Stranglehold." That was the alias it wanted.

Su Ming didn't mind. As long as the symbiote didn't start splitting spores or causing trouble, he was perfectly fine with giving it freedom.

"Stranglehold" was a good name. As a semi-solid organism, the symbiote's primary method of killing enemies, aside from biting, was constricting them with its tendrils or body. At least it was more accurate than "Venom," which didn't even have venom.

"Alright. I thought my codename 'Deathstroke' might inspire you to choose something like 'Gravedigger' or 'Funeral,' or based on your behavior, maybe even 'Spray.' But if you like Stranglehold, that's fine."

Though they had settled on "Stranglehold," Su Ming still had time to kill while flying, relying on the cloak. He casually played with the symbiote as if it were a pet.

The symbiote returned to its Captain America disguise, and Su Ming could feel it tightening around him, almost like it was hugging him.

A pleasant thought entered Su Ming's mind—a feeling of happiness coming from Stranglehold.

The symbiote adjusted the concentration of its internal chemicals, generating bio-electricity that transmitted signals to Su Ming's spine, which then sent these signals to his brain. That was how the two communicated.

Honestly, the sensation was a bit eerie. It felt like he had a split personality, with an inner self constantly chatting with his primary one.

But Su Ming was calm about it. He had expected this from the start, and as time passed, the communication between them would only grow more detailed.

For now, it was fine. From the moment Su Ming decided to let the symbiote bond with him, he had prepared for every possibility.

Stranglehold's thoughts were simple. Communicating with it was akin to talking with a cat or a dog. It couldn't fully articulate its desires, and its combat instincts led it to prefer straightforward, violent solutions.

Clearly, it would take more time and effort to train Stranglehold into a truly useful companion.

While Su Ming was playing around with Stranglehold, the magical cloak dropped him onto the ground, raising one corner to point toward a nearby ladder. It signaled for Su Ming to climb it and head toward the Eiffel Tower.

Su Ming patted the cloak's collar. The cloak's gesture was right—he had to run there instead of flying. After all, he was disguised as Captain America. If he flew, Zemo might catch on.

The magical cloak shrank down, turning into a small red scarf draped around Su Ming's neck. This was a little better. French people, after all, were fond of scarves, and this wouldn't tip Zemo off.

Everything was set. Stranglehold attached the Godkiller shield to Su Ming's arm. As for the Night Sword, Su Ming had hidden it in a safe place back in the catacombs before leaving the guerrilla headquarters.

So this time, he could only rely on the Godkiller and his own fists.

"Let's go. Time to see what's happening."

Outside, for some reason, Cable and his team were pinned down on the Eiffel Tower. German forces surrounded them, flooding toward their position like a tide.

Luckily, they had a good spot. The Germans couldn't bomb the tower, so heavy artillery was limited to encircling them. For now, only attack dogs and semi-mechanical soldiers were advancing.

The two-legged robots Su Ming had dismantled earlier? There were three or four dozen of them here, completely blocking all access to the plaza. He also spotted some Hydra tanks equipped with energy cannons.

As for the pigeons Su Ming had seen earlier in the day? They had long since disappeared.

Cable's team wasn't at the top of the tower but at the midway platform. They hadn't suffered any losses yet, but it was clear that Cable and Bishop were barely holding the situation together.

Cable had barricaded the stairs, using his large, power-adjustable rifle to mow down any advancing enemies, while Bishop, being able to fly, was fending off airborne units and snipers.

The German snipers were skilled, equipped with visors that resembled Deadshot's, forcing Bishop to constantly deflect bullets with his knives while trying to stay airborne. He was like a trapped fly in a spider's web.

Su Ming was now in the middle of the enemy's formation. He calculated the situation carefully and then began to take action.