A/N: I want you all to know that before we proceed with this chapter, things are going to be intense the moment they start turning into riders the first time. Thought I'd give you a heads-up.
Ghost Riders: Rage and Vengeance
Chapter 4: The Riders Are Born; The Caretaker
Sometime later, Johnny was speaking to himself in a mirror as Maria was holding Annabelle.
"You can't live in fear. You can't live in fear. You made that jump. No one else made that jump. You're the best rider. You deserve a second chance.", Johnny spoke before suddenly, his hands started to look as though they're burning, much to his worry before he tried to rinse them, only to notice smoke seeping out of them.
At the same time, Roxanne turned to Maria.
"Can I have her back?", Roxanne asked.
"Sure.", Maria spoke before handing her to Roxanne, who almost immediately noticed that she was suffering the same problem with Annabelle starting to cry from the pain of the heat, although Roxanne didn't quite know it yet, worried as she was.
"The only time I have ever heard Annabelle cry is on the day she was born. So, what the heck happened, Mom?", Maria spoke as she took Annabelle back and rocked her back and forth, trying to calm her down before Roxanne looked down to see her hands were now redder than normal.
"Oh, no, no, no, no no, no, no!", Roxanne spoke as she then rushed over to the bathroom and rinsing her hands to cool them off before noticing a smoke coming from her hands, too, just as Maria approached.
"I... I don't know.", Roxanne spoke in worry.
"Look, maybe you and Johnny just need a night off. Get a chance to relax.", Maria suggested as Annabelle calmed down with a coo, not knowing exactly that a voice was calling to Johnny and Roxanne.
"Johnny. Roxie...", Mephisto spoke.
"You know what...? You're right.", Roxanne responded.
Soon after, the two were outside.
"Johnny... Roxie...", the voice called out, worrying them before the two noticed not only two motorcycles: Grace and a similar lookalike.
"Grace...? But... why are they...?", Roxanne puzzled before seeing the source of the voice as she and Johnny noticed before Johnny raised his finger and pointed it at him.
"You.", Johnny spoke.
"Hello, you two. How's the family?", Mephisto asked.
"Stay away from us. And stay away from them.", Roxanne warned.
"And I'll do that. For the family? But as for you two? It's a little late for that. Nice bike.", Mephisto spoke.
"Why are you here?", Johnny asked.
"Oh, I've always been here, Johnny. All along. Phoenix... Denver... Houston.", Mephisto responded.
"It was you. Keeping him alive.", Roxanne realized.
"No. No, Roxie. It's all you two. Your husband's the best. And I'm his greatest fan. The posters, the video games... the crowds screaming, chanting: Johnny Johnny Johnny... It makes me so proud. It's like watching an investment... that keeps growing and growing until the day you cash it in. That day is today, you two.", Mephisto spoke.
"What are you getting at?", Roxanne asked.
"Find the one known as Blackheart... and destroy him.", Mephisto ordered.
"Find him yourself.", Johnny refused as he got on the motorcycle.
"It doesn't work like that. You two're under contract, remember? If you both succeed..., I'll return your souls.", Mephisto offered as Johnny found himself starting to use his motorcycle while Roxanne was suddenly moved toward her own.
"Well, that's tough. Because we're not doing it.", Roxanne refused.
"Neither of you have any choice.", Mephisto spoke before tapping his staff onto the ground, causing both motorcycles to rev up so fast that the back wheel rolled out some of the street as pieces before driving off, frightening both Johnny and Roxanne a great deal as they even sped up faster than possible, each starting to leave a trail of flames behind them with Johnny's flames being orange and Roxanne's being blue.
Worse yet, they even started breaking everything they passed by, even the pawn shop. In the meantime, a traffic cop was even scanning for anyone with a high miles per hour count only for it to go higher than expected as the two passed by him, knocking him back as the billboard was set on fire before the traffic cop got up in disbelief.
Meanwhile, Blackheart and the other demons were looking around when they heard someone shout out as soon as he came out with a lantern.
"Hey. You can't come in here. This is private... property.", the man spoke as he took a look at Blackheart, who turned around.
"There was a cemetery here.", Blackheart responded.
"Yeah, a long time ago.", the man replied.
"What happened to the graves?", Blackheart asked.
"They moved them.", the man responded.
"Where?", Blackheart asked before Wallow appeared.
"I don't know.", the man replied.
"Who would?", Blackheart asked before Abigor appeared and chuckled.
"Saint Michael's church. They're in charge of the whole thing. Look, you really shouldn't be here.", the man responded.
"That's what they keep telling me.", Blackheart responded before making the man rot.
Little did Blackheart know that Johnny and Roxanne were careening toward the warehouse before getting knocked off their bikes before they stood up, starting to give off smoke completely. But it's not just the smoke. Soon, the couple started writhing in intense pain and agony as their voices started to distort amidst their grunts in pain before giving off orange and blue flames from their feet. A few moments later, both Johnny and Roxanne roared in pain, their eyes glowing orange and blue flames before their skin actually started to get burned off their bodies, making them scream and laugh insanely as their skin finally burned off, revealing that they are now skeletons coated in flames named Ghost Rider and Retribution with, in their eye sockets, glowing orbs with each one in accordance to whose eyes belong to who with Ghost Rider roaring and Retribution then letting out a demonic, powerful shriek loud enough to break apart all the available windows in the warehouse at the same time before Blackheart laughed to himself and stopped near the two skeletal beings stopped closer to Blackheart.
Play Eminem Music: "Venom"
"Looking for someone?", Blackheart smirked.
"You...!", Retribution growled before the orange-flaming skeleton with orange flames pointed at Blackheart.
"Back to hell.", Ghost Rider added.
"We're not gonna have a meaningful conversation now, are we?", Blackheart asked.
"You're going down.", Ghost Rider discouraged.
"I don't think so.", Blackheart discouraged before Abirgor flew past both riders, trapping Johnny's necks in chains, seemingly killing them as his light went out with Blackheart laughing.
But moments later, that only enraged Retribution as she then roared demonically at Blackheart, petrifying him with a bit of fear, although not literally, before she then grabbed a rope of chains near Johnny, encasing it in blue flames, and then tried to use her rope to whip at Blackheart angrily with all the rage she has now toward him while Blackheart just toyed with her by dodging with each whip leaving a burn from where it was struck, neither one knowing that Johnny's flames reignited, indicating that he is still alive, much to Blackheart's disdain before Roxanne finally hit him in the arm while Blackheart was distracted, singeing it to a point that it has a sort of burning boil as a scar before Roxanne stopped, having noticed that Johnny was still alive as he got the chains off him and got his own rope before both marched toward Blackheart only for Roxanne to be stopped by Wallow, who roared with a hiss at her. Suddenly, a moment later, Roxanne was then rammed by a truck, which was driven by Zigor.
"No!", Johnny shouted as Blackheart smirked before Zigor stepped out.
"Ha! What a bother. She wasn't anywhere near as tough as I thought she'd be.", Zigor smirked before suddenly a clanking thud sound was heard before suddenly a skeletal hand coated in blue flames burst out, surprising him before Roxanne burst out, roaring. worrying Zigor before she then took her rope, spun it, and encased her fist with it.
"You shouldn't have made me mad!", Roxanne shouted before punching Zigor in the face, leaving a singing mark that's causing his body to fall into stone pieces slightly as Johnny and Roxanne glaring at him.
"Have mercy.", Zigor pleaded.
"Sorry. All out of mercy.", Ghost Rider responded before he then got out his rope, spun it, and then wrapped it around Zigor.
"Enjoy hell, loser.", Retribution spoke before she then pressed her hand against his forehead, making him scream in extreme pain as both were now burning him.
"Help me!", Zigor shouted before it was made evident that neither Blackheart nor his cohorts were to be found before he yelled as he was turned to stone and subsequently smashed into pieces by Retribution, who, alongside Ghost Rider, called for her motorcycle as he does his before both haunted the motorcycles, distorting both vehicles, although Roxanne's vehicle has a bit of a glider feature, before the two Riders drove off with Retribution then trying her hand with the glider as the motorcycle wings then turned into hover wheels with which Retribution was now flying.
Meanwhile, someone was trying to rob the girl of her stuff.
"Give me the damn bag!", the mugger urged before Johnny and Roxanne stopped and turned to the closest scene of crisis.
"Help! Help!", the victim shouted before both Ghost Rider and Retribution roared in rage with lightning striking down on the ground before from that strike came Ghost Rider and Retribution with lightning briefly sparking on Retribution's body and dancing across the sky and thunder sounding in all direction.
"Leave.", Retribution spoke to the victim, gesturing to her the way out with her head.
"Thanks.", the victim spoke before she took off with her bag just as Johnny raised his arm and pointed at him.
"You. Guilty. Look into my eyes.", Ghost Rider spoke as he then picked up the mugger by the shoulders, prompting him to try and stab him in the shoulder, only for that to be ineffective as the knife only melted due to the sheer heat.
"Your soul is stained by the blood of the innocent. Feel their pain.", Ghost Rider spoke as the man then peered into Ghost Rider's eyes.
"And I will show you nightmares beyond the horrors of hell!", Retribution added.
"NOOOOOOOOOOOO!", the mugger shouted as he then started seeing all the terrible things he's done playing back all at once before it then turned into a silhouette of the Ghost Rider's skull face before zooming away to show the black chars, showing that the mugger was now trapped in eternal limbo, doomed to relive every waking moment of his crime.
After that, Retribution then roared shrilly and demonically at the mugger, who was then turned to stone as her blue flames then encased the mugger and went out when the change to stone was complete, allowing Retribution to smash him into pieces with one swing form her chain rope before it went back on her body.
End Eminem Music: "Venom"
Soon after, Ghost Rider and Retribution found themselves at a graveyard as the sun started to rise, not only causing them to sputter and slow down, but also making them suffer some pain as they roared in pain, the fires going out before their skin reformed, turning back into Johnny and Roxanne before they crawled up to the graves of Johnny's father and Roxanne's parents before a shovel then etched itself into the ground and looked up to see someone in a hat.
"Morning, boneheads.", the stranger spoke before spitting something out with Roxanne and Johnny both passing out.