Chapter Two: Black as Night

[The Mighty Thor]

Watching over the dark-haired woman’s shoulder, Wong looked on as the mutant with the computer mind began to work in earnest upon the translation. The bald man answered, “I am sure that given enough time, I could locate some of the books I spoke of. But if you think that you can work without them, I would feel more comfortable down here with the rest of you.” Just then, as if to justify the hesitation in the Asian man’s voice, a scream called out from the stygian night, and was quickly silenced. Clinging to the ceiling above, Spider-man’s head jerked toward the female voice, and his spider sense began to tingle in response. Below him, standing at the window, Dan pulled the heavy black curtains aside to see what the moonlight outside might reveal. A heavy amount of perspiration began to form upon his brow as he turned back to warn the others, “I don’t think you’ll have time to go hunting for lost books my friend. It’s time to get our game faces on, for innocent blood has been spilled.” As his companions looked on, they could see the effect those words had upon Dan. The sweat that clung to his face soon gave way to blistering flesh. It looked as though the man was trying to spontaneously combust before their very eyes. But Wong did not make a move, which in turn gave Sage and Spider-man pause. They did not know what to think as they watched the leather clad Punisher’s skin and muscle melt away leaving nothing but raw bone. And then, as a finishing touch, the young man’s head combusted indeed, leaving a flaming skull sitting atop his shoulders. Dan Ketch was gone for now. In his place stood the Spirit of Vengeance, Ghost Rider.

Unfazed by the spectacle, Wong gave his orders, “Sage, keep working. If things get nasty, I will be here.” Looking at the other two, he said, “You two get outside and buy the pretty lady the time she needs. And send whatever is out there back to hell while you are at it.” Not needing to be told twice, Ghost Rider busted out onto the street while Spider-man took the high road and exited from the second story window. As soon as he was out into the moonlight, Spider-man could see the source of the screams. A block away, looking very much like a pack of wandering hoodlums, a trio of vampires were making their way closer, leaving death and destruction in their wake. Spider-man watched as Ghost Rider pulled his flaming chain from around himself, and began to swing the links high above his head as he walked into the middle of the street, obviously intent on blocking the path of the advancing fiends.

Shaking the bad memories from his mind, Vance looked back at Hank as he asked about the mansion’s defenses. “Actually, if what we’ve heard is accurate, that’s where we might get lucky. We think that Xavier was able to destroy all of the Institute’s technological defenses before Logan killed him. So all we’ll be left with are the vampires. Lucky us, huh?” But any further flippant remarks from Vance were quickly stopped as he watched as his leader, the Punisher known as Castle, halt his progress. The hot-tempered man held his hand in the air signaling for the group to stop. Frank couldn’t know for sure how many of them were out there, but he was certain they were being tailed. And although the exact identity of their pursuers was a mystery, their intentions were not. Recognizing the look, Vance spoke up quickly, “We’ve got company. Be on your guard.” With the warning given, Vance and Frank unsheathed their weapons and began walking once more, not intending to give their followers an easy target. Not daring to keep his eyes in one place, Vance looked around as he quipped in Paige’s direction, “Not bad for a first date, eh?”

In a sort of back and forth race towards Westchester, Rogue and Norrin flew at an ever increasing pace. It was no surprise that Barry was enjoying the speed in its fullest. If he knew what kind of speed Norrin was truly capable of, it would probably blow the young speedsters mind. At first Blade did not mind the quick pace either. His enhanced senses worked just as well on the fly as they would have if he had been standing still. But as the quartet got closer to Westchester, his keen eyesight noticed more and more of the hell spawn lurking in the streets and shadows below. Realizing that the Xavier Institute was now, without a doubt, the source of the vampire explosion, Blade asked for Rogue and the Surfer to slow their pace, hoping to get a better look at their foe’s activities. As they slowed down for a better look, Blade asked Rogue, “Hey kid, do you think you could turn on the invisibility for all of us? It won’t keep us completely hidden from the vamps, but it couldn’t hurt.”