"Uh..."
"Heh-heh-heh-heh-heh-heh!"
Ghost Rider's wild laughter echoed across the sky. The burning black chains were like evil spirits crawling out of hell. The flaming skull stretched out from the burning Dodge muscle car as it crushed through the military base with savage force.
The soldiers resisted desperately, but they could not hurt him at all. Instead, the moment they met his gaze, their souls seemed to be sucked out, and they collapsed helplessly to the ground.
The Penance Stare judged guilty souls. Against criminals, especially souls that still carried even the faintest guilt over the past, it was an attack that could directly burn them at the spiritual level.
Even something as small as a child bullying a classmate could be called a sin, let alone these people, whose hands never strayed far from their weapons and who were always ready to obey orders and seize resources from other areas. The evil in their hearts had swollen like a sea. Ghost Rider merely glanced at them, and those soldiers seemed to be drained dry, wailing as they covered their heads, struggling and rolling across the ground.
Ghost Rider completely ignored their lives. He drove the hellish chariot forward, crushing them without restraint and leaving behind broken limbs, shattered skulls, fragments of bone, and red-and-white pulp...
The roar of the chariot left flames of war and fury across New Jersey, as if it had opened its sharp teeth and intended to swallow everything into nothingness.
"Stop!" Speedster lay on the ground, roaring in pain and anger. The place before him that carried so many of his memories had instantly turned into a sea of fire, and his lower body was already submerged in the flames, burned black.
He had been Captain Carter's comrade in the last century and a World War II hero, an existence from the same era as her. The two had even partnered up during the fight against the Red Skull and briefly joined the Howling Commandos as a speedster.
After the war, Speedster accepted S.H.I.E.L.D.'s recruitment, but he was framed by Hydra and sealed inside an ice chamber for more than fifty years. He was not rescued until Nick Fury took over S.H.I.E.L.D. Only then did he meet Captain Carter again, after which he was sent to New Jersey to protect this place of historic importance and live out his later years.
His fifty-year-old body could no longer support him in running, and his superhuman physique was still vulnerable to the passage of time.
Ghost Rider had easily crushed his legs, letting out a devilish chuckle. The thick chains tore across the old warrior's body, leaving cracked bloody marks across his back.
"You..." Speedster raised his head stubbornly, only to receive a burning boot. It stomped viciously onto his face, leaving a deep red shoeprint.
"Inform Peggy Carter and tell her to come to New Jersey. Otherwise..." Speedster's eyes widened. Ghost Rider's ferocious appearance actually spoke in a woman's voice. He felt like the Evil Queen from Snow White, with malice nearly spilling out of him.
Just as Ghost Rider was about to tear off Speedster's head, a shield flew in from the distance and struck Ghost Rider in the skull.
Immediately afterward, Sam's figure pierced through the sky. With the help of the Redwing thrusters, he kicked Ghost Rider away and saved the tortured Speedster.
"Barton! Your turn!" Sam shouted into the communicator by his ear.
In the distance, an arrow shining with silvery-white light accurately struck Ghost Rider's eye socket. The arrow exploded instantly, releasing thick white smoke that stood out clearly beneath the dark night sky.
The figures of several people were revealed. Barton pulled the bowstring, his eyes sharp as an eagle's, already prepared for battle.
Captain Carter picked up her shield and said, "Sam, take him to the fighter jet and use the regeneration cradle to stabilize him." The "him" in Carter's words was naturally Speedster. Their friendship spanned decades, but at the moment, she had no time to focus on him. Because the monster in front of her...
"Robbie Reyes disappeared during the attack in Los Angeles the day before yesterday. I didn't expect him to be captured by Wanda." Carter could tell at a glance that the Robbie before her was being controlled. The scarlet aura rising from his flaming skull was proof.
"I don't want to be enemies with that Dodge. This car is beautiful," Barton joked. "Can I take it as a trophy? I still need something to haul logs back home."
"That depends on what your wife says," Sam's voice came through the headset, mocking Barton for having no authority at home.
"Stay alert..." Captain Carter raised her shield and stared solemnly at the slowly dissipating smoke. According to the law of smoke, no visible damage meant no real damage. Robbie had clearly not been harmed.
"Do we really have a way to defeat an enemy from a mythological system?" Barton forced a smile, cold sweat gathering on his forehead. He did not want to fight these monsters at all. He felt that breaking into a Hydra base would be easier than this.
Robbie laughed wildly, his teeth clacking together. His sharp face was slightly different from the Ghost Riders of the past, and the white upper half and black lower half of his skull gave him an even stranger appearance.
"Peggy Carter! You finally came." Wanda's voice emerged from Robbie's mouth, her enchanting tone like a devil's whisper striking hard at the hearts of the three.
"It's the Penance Stare. Don't be afraid! Everything we do is to protect the world!" Captain Carter shouted to the two beside her. Only fearlessness could block this blow.
"The more you say that, the more scared I get..." Barton directly closed his eyes and relied on his ears to judge the sound.
"Frank! Natasha!" Captain Carter shouted.
A missile streaked toward them, trailing a plume of white smoke.
Frank carried the launcher on his shoulder and laughed ferociously before throwing it away. He held an M16 rifle in both hands and aimed at Robbie's body.
Tongues of flame burst from the barrel, and bullets rained down on Robbie, tearing his racing suit into tatters. The impact drove him back again and again.
Ghost Rider had an immortal body and could not be killed. Bullets, that familiar specialty, were about as lethal to him as peanuts.
But the impact still forced Robbie to take a few steps back, and those few steps gave the others an opportunity.
"Do it, Natasha!" Captain Carter raised her shield and rushed toward Robbie. Natasha, who had been hiding near Robbie for some time, moved as nimbly as a soft cat. Her slender waist twisted to an incredible degree as she took out the electric net on her wrist and threw it toward Robbie, who was still momentarily stunned.
Zzzzt!
Violent electric shocks covered the skeleton's body. Robbie was immortal, but that did not mean he could not feel pain. Blue lightning wrapped around the withered skeleton, making it look as if he were performing a break dance while the current froze him in place.
Captain Carter leaped forward and slammed her vibranium shield hard into Robbie's skull. Sam also seized the chance to strike Robbie with Redwing, and the drone's camera jammed directly into his mouth.
Natasha slid to Robbie's feet. The elastic cord at her waist swung around Robbie's ankles and suddenly contracted. The man's center of gravity destabilized, and he fell to the ground.
"Don't let your guard down! Barton, watch the perimeter!"
Captain Carter shouted. At this moment, Natasha had tied Robbie up with a special material. Barton raised his bow and arrow, constantly watching the movements around them.
Captain Carter frowned. Even now, she still did not understand why Wanda wanted to attack this military base, a place seemingly beyond her reach. There was nothing here that should have attracted her.
"Wanda, I know you can hear me," Captain Carter said seriously as Robbie was restrained.
She was also helpless. Ghost Rider's immortal body made torture useless. She could only hope Wanda would change her mind, but... the possibility of that was even smaller than Strange coming back to life.
"Hehehe, Peggy Carter..." Wanda's seductive voice sounded, making people feel cold and uncomfortable. Barton even shuddered. The woman's voice seemed to carry some kind of magic, making him unconsciously feel the urge to surrender.
"Because you're fun..." Wanda gave an absurd answer.
"Fun?!" Carter and the others had not expected such an answer.
"You killed so many people and destroyed an entire base just because you wanted to play with the captain?" Sam asked in shock, unable to believe it.
Of course, that was not the only reason. Wanda believed that if she could also take this core leader of the heroes into her possession, cracks would appear in the hearts of the superheroes who regarded Carter as their leader. Diehard admirers like Frank might even follow Carter into Wanda's camp. Winning without fighting would save a great deal of effort.
Frank stuffed the machine gun into Robbie's mouth and pulled the trigger. In an instant, countless flames scattered everywhere, piercing through Robbie's skull, only for the wound to be restored by hellfire without leaving any injury at all.
"Shit! This thing just won't die!" Frank cursed angrily. He would not allow anyone to disrespect his idol.
"Heh-heh-heh, I won't play with you anymore, Peggy Carter... Don't keep me waiting too long!" Wanda's wild laughter gradually faded, replaced by the burning light in Robbie's eyes. The flames of vengeance blazed, and the restraints around his body melted. He raised his head and met Sam's eyes.
"Get out of the way!" Captain Carter punched Robbie's head down, but Sam had already been hit. Hollow roars came from his empty eyes. He remembered his days as a paratrooper, remembered his comrades being shot to death one by one beside him. They had eliminated the enemy, but lost their own people.
"Barton, drag Sam away!" Captain Carter and Natasha fought Robbie together. The hellish chain swung toward the two of them. Carter blocked it, but the impact sent her flying.
Natasha tried to dodge the blow, but her ankle was accidentally caught by the chain.
"Heh-heh-heh-heh-heh-heh!" Robbie's crazy laughter echoed across the sky. With a powerful shake, Natasha's body was smashed into the ruins, and she stopped moving.
"Peggy Carter!" Flames suddenly surged from Robbie Reyes's body, and the hellish chariot in the distance seemed to sense it. It started automatically, roared savagely, and rushed toward Carter.
The woman rolled several times across the ground, narrowly avoiding being crushed by the chariot. Barton also took the opportunity to drag the dazed Sam aside before immediately joining the battle.
However, even with his skills, even if he was better than Robbie in technique, even if Robbie stood there and let Barton hit him for a month, Barton probably would not be able to break his defense. Robbie only needed one blow to keep Barton in bed for the rest of his life.
Marvel's power scaling was especially chaotic. In a character's own solo story, even an extremely weak character could still display the strength to defeat other heroes.
Barton's advantage lay in the arrows on his back, each with strange functions: explosive arrows, ice arrows, gas arrows, spring arrows, flash arrows... They had different uses and might not be very lethal, but in certain situations, they could have significant effects.
For example, now...
Barton drew an arrow from his quiver and shot it at Robbie's body. Although Robbie's body was covered by a thick racing suit, Barton, who was proficient in combat and had extraordinary eyesight, clearly remembered every joint in the human body.
The arrow shot into the gap between the bones. Captain Carter grabbed Barton by the collar, and the two ran away.
Boom!
"Nice! That's Hawkeye! Woo-hoo!" Looking at the flames rising from the explosion, Barton waved his fist excitedly. But the excitement did not last long, because Robbie drove the hellish chariot through the smoke and rushed toward them with wild laughter and resentment.
Carter narrowly avoided the chariot's impact, but Barton was not so lucky. Hellish chains appeared out of thin air, and the burning steel rope tightly entangled Barton before dragging him across the hard ground.
After being dragged for more than a hundred meters, Barton had become a bloody mess. He was thrown to the side of the road and lay there without moving.
"Damn... I should've brought Black Bolt..." Carter felt a little regret. She had thought the five Avengers would be enough to deal with the accident in New Jersey, but she had not expected...
This was the first time she clearly understood Ghost Rider's power. Although she had fought side by side with one before, riding a horse and driving a car were two entirely different things.
He seemed like an insurmountable mountain. Robbie Reyes was the king standing atop that mountain, looking invincibly down at the enemies at its foot. Wherever his gaze landed, all were weak.
The heavy chain violently struck the vibranium shield, and a fierce sonic boom exploded, blasting everything around them away. Scrapped tanks, crumpled tents, burning sand...
Carter was forced several steps back by the huge impact. Her foot caught on a raised stone, and she stumbled.
Robbie seized the flaw in an instant. Hellfire wrapped around the chain as it came crashing down with unstoppable force, striking Carter heavily on the shoulder. Pain exploded from the depths of her soul in the blink of an eye, like countless claws stretching out from hell, mockingly tearing at Carter's soul and trying to devour her.
Carter felt only agony. After that blow, her shoulder blade shattered, one arm lost the ability to move, and even her shield fell to her feet. She dropped to her knees with a thud.
"Become a toy, Peggy Carter!" Robbie's voice sounded, and thick chaos magic emerged from his head, determined to turn Carter into Wanda's doll.
The demonic bones were about to touch Carter's head.
At the critical moment—
Boom!
The shield slammed into Robbie's waist. The moment the skeleton turned around, he was greeted by continuous tongues of flame, and a grenade happened to lodge in Robbie's eye socket.
Boom!
The shield flew back toward Carter. The woman caught it and blocked the sudden explosion.
Robbie's body was blasted backward, and a strong man in a skull-marked tight vest stared fiercely at the enemy.
The Punisher—Frank.
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