Sorcerer in the Marvel Universe

"That laugh is awful."

Evenson grimaced.

There was only one person on this aircraft capable of producing that kind of deranged laughter besides himself, and that person was Johnny Blaze, who was currently losing his battle against the Spirit of Vengeance.

Claire and Melinda both looked at Evenson.

The message was obvious.

Go deal with it.

Mental illness wasn’t his fault.

Letting someone lose control and start hurting people, however, would absolutely become Evenson’s problem.

Johnny’s control over the Spirit of Vengeance had been steadily deteriorating.

And now it was nighttime.

That was when the Rider was strongest.

Surrounded by the lingering presence of people who had innocent blood on their hands, the Spirit of Vengeance was becoming increasingly agitated.

"GAAAAH!"

Johnny let out another agonized scream.

Then it twisted into a sick, manic laugh.

He rolled across the floor, pounding both fists against it as though trying to beat the thing inside him into submission.

His skin flushed red as if he’d been boiled alive.

The wild expression on his face kept changing.

For brief moments, the Rider’s visage surfaced beneath Johnny’s features.

His eye sockets sank into black hollows.

The flesh around his mouth vanished, leaving nothing but charred teeth.

Evenson hurried toward him.

The last thing he wanted was Johnny transforming inside the aircraft.

The Rider would tear through the place like a rabid animal, and his supernatural strength alone would be enough to turn the aircraft into a very expensive new mode of transportation.

Johnny sensed someone approaching.

He suddenly rose from the floor.

The movement was unnaturally stiff, almost corpse-like.

Then he threw back his head and lunged.

"Hmph."

Evenson stopped him with a contemptuous snort.

He raised his right hand.

Green fel flames erupted across his palm.

Johnny froze mid-charge.

His eyes fixed on the fire.

Then he cautiously took a step backward.

"Good."

Evenson rubbed his chin with his free hand.

"At least you know when you’re supposed to be afraid. That means you’re not completely feral."

Apparently, the Spirit of Vengeance wasn’t entirely mindless.

It remembered.

More importantly, it remembered exactly how badly it had suffered whenever fel energy was involved.

"Johnny."

Evenson lifted the green flames slightly.

"Can you hear me?"

Johnny squeezed his eyes shut and dragged in a ragged breath.

"I can hear you."

Sweat covered his face.

The moment the Rider retreated even slightly, Johnny managed to reclaim a little control over his own body.

"Come with me."

Evenson lowered the flames.

"I’ll teach you how to control it."

He made a subtle gesture toward one of the surveillance cameras behind him.

"Oh, and don’t forget your magic wheels."

Johnny was too busy fighting the Rider inside his own head to question anything.

He simply grabbed the pair of roller skates he’d stolen earlier and followed Evenson.

Melinda watched the exchange from behind.

She recognized the meaning of Evenson’s gesture immediately.

Her eyes shifted.

A sinister smile slowly appeared on her face.

Then she followed.

Evenson led Johnny toward the rear cargo door of the aircraft.

The pilot opened it.

Cold night air immediately rushed inside.

"Come here, Johnny."

Evenson waved him over.

"Look outside."

Johnny stepped toward the open hatch.

The darkness stretched endlessly beneath them.

The cold Eastern European night wind swept across his body.

For the first time in a while, he felt a little more comfortable.

"Put this on."

Claire hurried up from behind them carrying something ridiculous.

A massive exercise hoop, nearly a meter across.

She slipped it over Johnny’s body.

"I’m a sorcerer. Wearing this should help."

She winked playfully at Evenson before bouncing away.

Johnny stared after her.

Evenson immediately nodded.

"She knows what she’s talking about. Keep it on."

Then he turned serious.

"Now close your eyes. Take a deep breath. Relax. Don’t think about anything else."

As he spoke, Evenson slowly backed toward the aircraft.

His eyes flicked toward Melinda.

Johnny suddenly opened his eyes.

"Wait..."

Something clicked.

His expression changed.

"I know what you’re doing!"

He turned toward Evenson.

"YOU—"

Melinda charged.

Ten meters.

That was all the runway she needed.

She launched herself into the air and planted both feet squarely into Johnny.

"AAAAAAAGH!"

Johnny shot out of the aircraft.

His furious, increasingly distant stream of profanity disappeared into the night.

Evenson casually shrugged.

He gave the surveillance camera another hand signal.

Close the hatch.

"You knew what we were doing."

The hatch began to close.

"So what?"

He turned toward Melinda.

She stood beside him with her hands on her hips, looking thoroughly pleased with herself.

"Feeling better?"

Melinda’s normally stern face finally cracked into a rare smile.

"Much."

She nodded toward the darkness outside.

"I think I can forgive him now."

"Good."

Evenson looked toward the quarry below.

"Let’s go down too."

His smile sharpened.

"He’ll heat things up for us."

"You take your people and rescue the kid while everyone is distracted."

At almost the exact same time, Carrigan finished his deal with Milkhakov.

Four Javelin launchers.

A dozen spare missiles.

Carrigan had bought enough firepower to start a small war.

Milkhakov looked at him curiously.

"How many people are you planning to deal with?"

A mercenary buying this many missiles had to be preparing for something big.

Carrigan gave him a bitter smile.

"Two."

"Two?"

Milkhakov turned toward his men.

Then he laughed.

The men around him joined in.

Apparently Carrigan didn’t want to tell him the truth.

Fine.

But did he really think such an absurd lie was believable?

Then the laughter stopped.

A strange shriek suddenly echoed across the quarry.

Everyone looked upward.

Unfortunately, the floodlights around the quarry were so bright that the night sky above them was almost impossible to see.

All they could make out was a tiny black speck falling rapidly from the darkness.

Carrigan’s blood ran cold.

He remembered what had happened the last time something had dropped out of the sky.

A terrifying woman had come crashing down on him without warning.

He immediately kicked aside a crate, grabbed a Javelin launcher, and loaded it.

Then the shrieking sound above suddenly transformed into a manic, otherworldly laugh.

The black speck began to glow.

Flames erupted around it.

"Damn it."

Carrigan’s face tightened.

"Something even worse."

The Ghost Rider was here.

And somehow, that was worse than the terrifying woman from before.

At least Carrigan had finished loading his weapon.

He locked onto the target.

Now all he could do was hope the Russian arms dealer hadn’t exaggerated the weapon’s capabilities.

He squeezed the trigger.

The missile launched.

And immediately did exactly what Evenson hated most about it.

It shot straight upward.

It actually climbed alongside the descending Ghost Rider, rising past him into the sky.

Then, at the apex of its trajectory, the missile made a violent 180-degree turn.

It came screaming back down.

The Ghost Rider was still in free fall.

He had nothing beneath him to brace against.

The missile slammed into his back and drove him violently into the ground.

Then—

BOOM!

The explosion swallowed him in a massive fireball.

The mercenaries erupted into cheers.

Men who made their living with guns and knives loved explosions.

Especially when someone else was inside them.

Milkhakov, being a respectable arms dealer with a reputation to maintain, didn’t share quite the same enthusiasm.

Still, he gave a few awkward claps.

He had no idea what they’d just killed.

But apparently applauding was appropriate.

Then the cheers began to fade.

The smiles disappeared.

Something moved inside the smoking crater.

A burning skull slowly emerged from the flames.

Not quite walking.

More like gliding.

The Ghost Rider emerged from the crater wearing a spiked leather jacket.

His feet rested on the stolen roller skates.

Chains wrapped around his body.

And in his left hand, he carried a massive metal ring wreathed in fire.

The flaming skull tilted to one side.

Then his left hand flicked forward.

The ring shot through the air.

It struck one of the nearby mercenaries.

The man didn’t even have time to scream.

His entire body instantly erupted into flames and dissolved into scattered embers.

The flaming ring curved through the air as though guided by an invisible hand.

Then it flew straight back into the Ghost Rider’s grasp.

That single attack was all the warning the mercenaries needed.

Every man in the quarry reached for his weapon.

Then the entire group opened fire.

The night erupted with gunfire.

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