The situation wasn't much different from how phisto had originally chosen Johnny Blaze.
Ordinary souls were difficult to claim. Heaven had its own interests, and Death held authority over the dead. Competing against either was rarely worth the effort.
Marked souls were another matter entirely.
Under phisto's contract, Johnny hunted evil souls. On the surface, he looked like a vigilante dispensing justice, an antihero punishing the wicked.
The truth was far less noble.
Every sinful soul he harvested ultimately ended up in phisto's fragnt of the Hell Dinsion, strengthening the old devil's power.
That was one of the major reasons phisto had risen from a Skyfather-level devil to a true Universal-level demon lord.
Drex Valen's interest in Johnny stemd from a different reason.
Johnny wasn't an ordinary Ghost Rider.
A true Ghost Rider drew power directly from Heaven. The Spirit of Vengeance itself had been personally created by God.
After the Great Flood of Noah's Ark, God realized humanity's sinful nature remained unchanged. Having already promised never again to punish mankind through such catastrophic ans, He instead created the Spirits of Vengeance to watch over humanity's darker impulses.
These spirits descended to Earth as living flas, bonding with human hosts and becoming Ghost Riders.
Their purpose was simple.
Punish evil.
Avenge the innocent.
Cleanse corruption wherever it took root.
They existed as natural enemies of sin itself.
When a true Ghost Rider destroyed a sinner, that soul was erased completely. It did not pass into any Hell Dinsion, nor did it strengthen devils or demons.
In many ways, Ghost Riders were less agents of vengeance and more manifestations of divine wrath.
Johnny, however, wasn't a normal Ghost Rider.
Strictly speaking, he wasn't one at all.
The entity bound to him was Zarathos.
A forr Hell Dinsion demon lord defeated and enslaved by phisto.
That distinction gave Johnny far greater potential than any ordinary Ghost Rider.
And history had proven it.
In countless tilines and stories, Johnny Blaze had beco the most powerful Ghost Rider of them all. There were versions of him capable of battling phisto repeatedly for sport, and even versions that slaughtered their way across the Marvel Universe.
Granted, this Johnny belonged to the movie universe. He probably lacked that level of terrifying power.
Still.
Potential was potential.
That alone made him worth acquiring.
As for why Drex spent so much effort harvesting souls instead of simply hunting other dinsional gods and devouring them?
The answer was obvious.
Neither Heaven nor phisto focused on that strategy either.
If beings that ancient and cunning preferred collecting souls, there had to be a reason.
Drex didn't claim to understand every cosmic secret, but he had learned one useful lesson:
When powerful people keep doing the sa thing for billions of years, it's usually worth paying attention.
phisto, in particular, had spent ages manipulating souls across countless universes, steadily climbing from a Skyfather-level devil to a Universal-level demon lord.
In so realities, he'd even sched his way into becoming Satan itself.
And that title carried far greater significance than most realized.
The ruler known as Satan possessed the authority to gather the countless fragnted pieces of the Hell Dinsion into a single whole. Whoever achieved that feat would beco a true Multiversal-level supre demon.
Every lesser lord ruling a Hell fragnt would live or die at Satan's command.
Clearly, souls mattered.
A lot.
Drex wanted to reach the Multiversal level as quickly as possible. The looming threat of the God Rune remained on his mind.
But advancent wasn't sothing that happened overnight.
Otherwise, among the countless dinsional gods scattered throughout existence, there would be far more than three true Multiversal demon lords.
The Vishanti didn't count.
The three entities functioned as a single unified existence.
They were effectively one being.
Johnny Blaze never had a chance to resist.
Drex dragged him directly into the Black Hole Dinsion.
When Johnny erged, the process was complete.
A mark from the Black Hole Dinsion had been branded onto his soul.
From that mont forward, Johnny belonged entirely to Drex.
Drex studied him for a mont.
Then frowned.
What a disappointnt.
This version of Johnny was far weaker than he'd expected.
Still, Drex decided to be generous.
He empowered him.
"Sir, don't you think this is a bit excessive?"
An elderly gentleman approached, leaning casually on a walking cane.
His shadow stretched unnaturally across the ground.
Behind him rose the silhouette of a monstrous devil.
phisto.
The mont he sensed his control over Johnny's soul disappear, the old devil abandoned any concerns about agreents with Heaven and rushed into the mortal world.
Then he found Drex.
And Johnny.
Soone had stolen his favorite Rider.
Naturally, he wasn't pleased.
"phisto?" Drex glanced at him. "This universe's version is weaker than I expected. Though I suppose this is only a projection."
At so point, Drex had already appeared behind him.
phisto never even noticed.
Those were the last words the devil heard before his consciousness vanished completely.
Against dinsional entities unable to bring their true forms into reality, Drex was effectively invincible.
Truthfully, even if their real bodies arrived, the result wouldn't change much.
Take Cyttorak, for example.
One of the most powerful dinsional gods in existence.
If Cyttorak ever stepped outside the Crimson Dinsion, Drex would happily kill him and devour the entire dinsion afterward.
"Johnny."
Drex turned toward his newest servant.
"What are you waiting for? Go do your job."
The motorcycle beneath Johnny suddenly twisted and transford.
Black Hole Dinsion energy flooded through the machine.
tal groaned.
Fire erupted.
Within seconds, the bike had beco a monstrous heavy motorcycle wrapped in roaring black flas.
Johnny scread.
Black fire engulfed him from head to toe.
Flesh vanished.
A burning skeletal figure erged.
A Ghost Rider clad in black hellfire.
The Ghost Rider of this cinematic universe had never appeared before.
As a result, Johnny's transformation imdiately attracted attention.
S.H.I.E.L.D. noticed him almost at once.
"What the hell is that?"
Surveillance feeds displayed the image clearly.
A flaming skeleton riding through New York atop a motorcycle wreathed in black fire.
Agent Coulson stared at the screen.
"Has Hell upgraded its technology recently?"
The joke received no laughter.
Everyone present looked alard.
Nick Fury was no exception.
Years earlier, Captain Marvel had already taught him that humanity wasn't alone in the universe.
Aliens existed.
That revelation had been difficult enough.
But Hell?
That was new.
And judging from Johnny's appearance, anyone would assu he had ridden straight out of the underworld.
A reaper.
A hell knight.
A collector of souls.
Villain practically radiated from every inch of him.
anwhile, Johnny had very little control over where he was going.
The motorcycle dragged him through the streets at terrifying speed, startling countless New Yorkers before finally charging straight into Hell's Kitchen.
Then he crashed through the entrance of an underground casino operated by a criminal syndicate.
The gamblers inside froze.
Seeing a flaming skull in the middle of the night was already terrifying enough.
Then Johnny spoke.
"Sinners! Your corruption and your stained souls stand condemned. I will be your judge!"
Panic exploded throughout the room.
S.H.I.E.L.D. continued tracking him in real ti.
Multiple agents were dispatched to establish contact with the apparent ssenger from Hell.
Curiously, none of them arrived.
One vehicle suffered engine failure.
Another crashed into a tree.
A third blew a tire.
An endless chain of unfortunate accidents delayed every team.
After all, S.H.I.E.L.D. agents liked to believe they served justice.
But plenty of Hydra agents worked within the organization as well.
And even among the loyal ones, not everyone possessed a completely clear conscience.
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