Johnny Blaze was a pitiable man, a soul tormented by a godforsaken devil.
Johnny's father was the famous motorcycle stuntman Barton Blaze. His father met with an accident during a performance while jumping through a ring of fire; Johnny watched with his own eyes as his biological father's head was ignited by the flames, burning into a skeleton.
It was a scene he would never forget for as long as he lived.
Afterward, he was adopted by his father's colleague, Craig Simpson, while his mother remarried and left, taking his younger brother and sister with her. His adoptive father treated him well, and Johnny felt he had come to terms with his father's death. He inherited the careers of both his biological and adoptive fathers, becoming a motorcycle stunt performer himself. He still loved performing the fire ring jump most of all, and he never once failed.
As the years passed, his relationship with his adoptive father's daughter, Roxanne, grew increasingly close. But everything changed one day when his adoptive father, Barton, was diagnosed with lung cancer. It was then that a devil found Johnny, claiming that if Johnny sold his soul and became his Rider, he could cure his adoptive father's cancer.
For the sake of his lover and his father, Johnny agreed to the deal. His adoptive father's cancer was cured—but twenty-two days later, during a performance, his adoptive father was ignited by flames during a stunt just as his biological father had been, his skull set ablaze.
The devil had promised to cure the cancer, but he had never promised that his father would continue to live. Such was a devil's bargain. And thus, Johnny was forced to become the Ghost Rider.
"I can guarantee that the moment you laid eyes on me, your past flashed through your mind as if you'd already reached the end of your life's journey." Mephisto leaned against the bar with a smile, sipping a most ordinary whiskey. Johnny downed the drink in his glass in one gulp before turning to look at Mephisto with resignation. "How did you get in here?"
Mephisto was unable to enter the physical realm; this was a fact Johnny knew well. His power in reality was extremely weak, only capable of transmitting his consciousness by mentally controlling other humans. Otherwise, he wouldn't have created the Ghost Rider to deal with his own son. But now, he had appeared here. Beyond surprise, Johnny felt mostly fear.
Fear of what this monster might be capable of doing.
"Well, you know there are many heroes in this world, right? They opened a door to save the world, and many of my acquaintances planned to slip in before the door closed. Fortunately, I was the one who made it through."
Johnny sighed helplessly. No matter which fool it was, bringing in a world-destroying devil while trying to "save the world" was never a good idea. But to Johnny's surprise, Mephisto did not hold him accountable for his previous slacking or even his betrayal. Instead, the devil looked at the television. The screen was broadcasting news of an unprecedented and terrifying enemy; the ruler of the world, Kang the Conqueror, was mobilizing his armies for action.
Yet another great conquest, but it had nothing to do with Johnny Blaze.
"Some people are truly boring, aren't they? Conquest, conquest, and more conquest—as if he has nothing else to do with his life."
Shaking his head in resignation, Mephisto sighed and finally stated his purpose. "Don't be nervous, Johnny. I'm not here to reprimand you for your past performance. In fact, I intend to wipe the slate clean, provided you can do one thing for me."
"No deal."
"Really? I thought you'd be happy to save the world." Mephisto offered his proposal: "Your eyes—the Penance Stare that judges evil—allow people to see into the depths of their own souls. Likewise, they can awaken the essence of a soul, even within a false reality. Your world was not originally like this; it was a beautiful era filled with heroes. But unfortunately, it has been tampered with."
"Don't you wish to restore it to the way it was?"
As Mephisto set down his glass, a flood of memories surged into Johnny's brain. Images of the world before Kang altered reality rushed into his mind all at once. He let out a pained wail, losing his balance and collapsing to the floor. He managed to stand up with the help of those around him and looked about, but Mephisto had already vanished without a trace.
Mephisto needed the Ghost Rider to go and awaken the heroes, to restore the world to its original form. In exchange, he would overlook Johnny's past rebelliousness, and both sides could resume fulfilling their bargain.
But the question was, why? What could Mephisto possibly stand to gain?
"Sorry, I'm feeling a bit unwell."
After apologizing to the bystanders, Johnny chose to leave. He hopped onto his motorcycle and opened his phone, looking at a location that had mysteriously appeared on his screen. It was a secret military base in Arizona called "The Cube." Beyond that, Johnny knew basically nothing.
Oh, he did know one more thing: he needed to go to that place to wake up a scientist named Bruce Banner. In the normal timeline, that guy was the Hulk.
"God, give me a break."
Taking a deep breath, Johnny Blaze resignedly set out on his journey.
A short while later, Peter and Strange arrived outside the tavern.
"Mephisto's trace appears here; he has been in this place."
Strange understood something the moment he entered. "The scent of a Spirit of Vengeance lingers around here, and not just any ordinary one. Mephisto came here to find his Ghost Rider."
The Ghost Rider... that should be the original, Johnny Blaze? Peter wasn't entirely sure, but Strange did not stop walking. There was a note left on the bar, pressed under a glass; no one had moved it, as if it were protected by something.
After casting a protective spell on himself and Peter, Strange picked up the note. He frowned and handed it to Peter. Peter took it, utterly confused. What does this mean? Mephisto left this for me?
The answer was no, but it wasn't far off.
The note contained only a simple set of geographic coordinates. Peter couldn't be sure what exactly was at that location, but a glance at the coordinates allowed him to deduce that it was in Arizona, likely in the middle of the great desert.
What was in the Arizona desert?
Peter was momentarily stumped, and then, he seemed to suddenly remember something.
"It's the Hulk." He looked at Strange with certainty. "Mephisto is looking for the Hulk."