Multiverse: Deathstroke

Chapter 394: Ch.393 Black Orchid

Alba walked through the humid rainforest, trudging upstream along a swift, clear river. The cold water did nothing to restore her clarity of mind. The Witch's Mark on her forehead tightly controlled her body.

She retained a sliver of consciousness, but only enough to observe from the perspective of a bystander, seeing the landscape with her once-own eyes.

Towering trees, dense vines, and lichen filled her vision, while the sparsest sunlight filtered through the leaves, illuminating the ground covered in a blanket of foliage.

In the past, such scenery would have made her feel relaxed and delighted.

But not now.

Her mind had no control over her body. Though her consciousness was awake, her actions followed Hecate, the Witch Mother's, orders alone.

She watched her body move towards the depths of the rainforest, feeling her face repeatedly break into sinister smiles.

She wanted to scream.

But she couldn't.

She was Black Orchid, a warrior of the Green and the Red—a fusion of plant and animal. She had fought for them countless times.

But her destination now was a place she had only heard of in legend.

In a dark corner forgotten by magic, the greatest beings of the Green rested here. Their consciousness carried the entire history of this planet.

For any animal, to venture there was an act of sacrilege, for it was a domain belonging solely to plants.

These great beings were the Parliament of Trees.

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Thanks to the Earth's primordial energy, these ancient trees were all at least 300,000 years old.

They were not immortal, but in the Amazon, where the power of the Green was at its peak, they could continue resting in a special state.

Pushing aside obstructive vines and stepping over inconvenient rocks, Alba finally reached her destination.

Massive trees, each bearing a face-like visage, surrounded her. These trees were completely unlike others in the rainforest.

They had consciousness.

And through the Green, she could feel their consciousness—asking her why she was here, why she harbored murderous intent and destruction.

Alba wanted to cry, to tell these beings how beautiful their earthly garden was, and how much joy the plants had once given her.

But she couldn't. The Mark gave her a mission.

The Parliament of Trees must die.

She would sever the ties between life and magic, allowing Hecate, the Witch Mother, to take over.

Su Ming and the others, who had been transported here by the Justice League's teleportation device, were hiding behind the dense trees.

Though these plants had initially shown hostility towards humans, they feared death—as conscious plants, they were very much afraid.

When Su Ming pulled out a bunch of molotov cocktails made from strong spirits, and Arabella displayed her Hellfire, the Parliament of Trees finally agreed to communicate with them properly.

Su Ming told them that the Witching Hour had arrived. Hecate not only wanted control over the magical realm, but much more.

All things in the world existed in balance, and the Green was the foundation of nature.

Without plants, the Red—representing the animals—would collapse. Next would be the Rot, the realm of the dead.

If everything were death without rebirth, the rule of death would be altered by witchcraft, and the ever-smiling girl would cease to exist.

Su Ming had already figured out Hecate's aim: she wanted to become the new rule—the rule of witchcraft.

Witchcraft eternal, where she would be everything.

Hiding among the dense treetops, Su Ming gave a twisted smile. It felt like this mission should actually be God's job. This level of crisis, involving the Endless family and entities beyond the Source Wall—wasn't it a bit much for his small four-person squad?

He could handle Black Orchid, and he assumed the fifth Marked one wouldn't be much harder. After all, if they were human, they had weaknesses.

But Hecate, being the very embodiment of magic and witchcraft, posed a different challenge.

Seal her? But looking at Arabella, who even now was sipping alcohol up in the trees, her mind was full of demonic flames—how could she possibly know sealing magic?

This was why she was no match for Constantine. Whenever she faced a demon, she'd just throw a fireball at it. Sealing magic? What was that?

Against a being like Hecate, God should have sent the Spectre to deal with her.

But Spectre, that "green-caped guy," currently had no host, so unless he actively sought you out, there was no finding him.

Besides, he had grudges with everyone—Shadowpact, Constantine, Arabella—he wanted to kill more than half of the magic community.

Even if he showed up now, he'd more likely be there to deal with them than help.

"Are we going to act or not? Black Orchid is starting to release witchcraft." Arabella whispered nearby.

Black Orchid wasn't a sorcerer, and the dazzling display of witchcraft before them all came from the power of the Mark.

Su Ming observed for a few seconds.

Like Spirit Dorne, she conjured purple energy with her hands, wildly swinging it around as if wielding hundred-meter-long light sabers.

He had already figured out Hecate's criteria for selecting the Marked ones.

Female, capable of flight, with a rare bloodline. Whether they knew magic seemed to be a secondary consideration.

Since Black Orchid's power level was about the same as Dorne's, the old tactics—a day trip to space and a "Sky Drop"—should work again.

"I'll do it. Let's hope it goes smoothly." Su Ming turned the Godslayer into a lasso, and with the reluctant, sulking Magic Floating Cloak, began to stealthily approach from above.

However, Black Orchid's combat experience in the jungle was far superior to that of a retired superhero like Dorne.

Almost as soon as Su Ming began his approach, she immediately sensed him.

"It's you again! The Witch Mother has warned me of your treachery!"

Su Ming got goosebumps. Constantine wasn't wrong—the Mark would turn their voices into Hecate's, like a bitter old witch.

And not just any old witch—more like one who's been hormonally imbalanced for tens of thousands of years, with hatred practically oozing out of her voice.

The sneak attack had failed, so it was time for a direct assault.

Su Ming immediately went into a dive, the leaves scraping against his armor with a rustling sound, dew shattering in the air.

However, Black Orchid melted away.

She transformed into a purple ooze, instantly shifting her form, flowing across the ground's fallen leaves like a liquid, avoiding his attack.

"Troublesome."

Su Ming shook his head, turning midair to look at Black Orchid as she reformed into her humanoid shape.

Her half-plant, half-animal nature granted her shapeshifting abilities, allowing her to alter her form almost without limit.

It was clear she had mastered this power well, and with Hecate's warning, the same tactics obviously wouldn't work twice.

It looked like they'd have to go for a group attack after all.