The Ghost Rider rides her motorcycle, leaving a line-shaped fire trail that burns out seconds later, patrolling the streets under the night sky. She is searching for sinners to punish and innocents to protect.
Suddenly, the Ghost Rider hears a woman screaming for help before hearing a man telling her to shut up. But then the Ghost Rider hears another woman telling the man to hurry up. The Ghost Rider then hightails it in the direction of the screams.
A young woman trembles in fear from the man holding a knife at her throat in an alley. The woman with the man looks through the purse, searching for anything of value or money the other woman might have. She squats on the ground while looking through the bag. Both muggers are high on whatever drug they can find.
"Find anything, June?" The man asked his accomplice, keeping the knife close to the woman's throat.
"Shut up, Marty!" June snapped. "With as loud as you talk, someone will hear us on Staten Island. Ah, I got a hundred bucks."
"What are you going to do to me?" The innocent woman cried.
Marty turns to June and laughs, "She wants to know what we are gonna do to her."
June stands up and approaches Marty and the woman before standing beside her partner in crime.
"Well, she knows our names and faces," June stated before saying with an evil smile, "It looks like we have no choice but to get rid of her."
"No! Please, no!" The woman pleaded, begging for her life.
Marty pulls his arm back, ready to stab the woman. But the man, June, and the woman stop their movement when they hear a rageful roar. The three look at the open end of the alleyway and are shocked to see a flaming skeleton dressed as a biker.
The Ghost Rider steps into the alley and approaches the three humans before stopping a few feet away.
"Leave," The Ghost Rider spoke with a distorted voice to the victim, gesturing to her the way out with her head.
"Thank you," The woman said before she took off with her bag.
The Ghost Rider raises her arm and points at the two muggers, "You. Guilty."
"Who the hell do you think you are!?" June questioned.
"I am the Spirit of Vengeance," The Ghost Rider replied.
"Marty Baby, get rid of this bitch!" June told her boyfriend.
"Halloween's over, psycho!" Marty walks toward the Ghost Rider. The man was high enough that he had no idea of the danger. Marty stabs the Ghost Rider in her shoulder, but it is ineffective because the blade melts from the heat. Marty looks in fear at the Ghost Rider, realizing he's in danger.
The Ghost Rider grabs the mugger by the shoulders, lifting him a few inches off the ground, "Your soul is stained by the blood of the innocent. Feel their pain."
The Ghost Rider peers into the male mugger's eyes, using the Penance Stare, the Ghost Rider's greatest weapon.
"Noooooooooooo!" Marty screamed as he began seeing all the horrible things he had done. The Ghost Rider forces him to see all the good people he had killed in the name of greed, with each image burned into his soul. His screaming soon stops.
When the Ghost Rider finished, she dropped Marty. The mugger lies unconscious on the ground with his eyes charred by the Penance Stare.
June rushes over, drops to her knees, and shakes Marty, trying to wake him up. But you can't wake the dead.
"Marty Baby! Wake up!" June exclaimed. The woman looks at the flaming skeleton. "What the hell did you do to my boyfriend!?"
"His soul was stained by the blood of the innocent," She responded. "The people he harmed have been avenged. Now, it is your turn."
June screams as the Ghost Rider grabs her and lifts her off the ground before using the Penance Stare. The female mugger's screaming stops seconds later. The Ghost Rider drops her. The two dead muggers' bodies lay beside each other in the alley while the Ghost Rider rides away.
As the Ghost Rider rides through the streets, she finds it a surprisingly quiet night. Other than the two muggers, the Ghost Rider dealt with a few attempted muggings, stopped a rape before the man could get his pants down, and stopped three robbers from shooting the family they robbed.
The Ghost Rider was riding down the street and caught the attention of a patrol car. The police car chases her, flashing its lights and blaring its siren. The Ghost Rider briefly looks at the police car behind her before returning to the road ahead.
"Time for some fun," The Ghost Rider said.
The Ghost Rider makes a sharp turn down a street, briefly losing the police before they catch up to her. After some quick thinking, the Ghost Rider speeds up, heading toward a tall building.
The two police officers in the car behind the Ghost Rider watch, expecting to see an explosion. But the two are shocked when they witness the Ghost Rider, not crashing but riding her motorcycle up on the side of the building.
After a few dozen feet, the Ghost Rider reaches the rooftop. She stops and looks at the city below. The Ghost Rider looks to the sky and sees the sun rising.
The Ghost Rider revs her bike before riding off the roof. As she falls, the Ghost Rider uses her chain to pull herself to the side of the building. She rides her bike down the side of the building before doing a wheelie and landing on the ground.
The Ghost Rider rides away, searching for concentrated ground as the sun replaces the moon in the sky. After some riding, Ghost Rider finds herself at Calvary Cemetery as the sun starts to rise, not only causing her bike to sputter and slow down but also making her suffer some pain as she roars in pain, the fires going out before her skin reformed, turning back into Marie before she crawls on the ground before passing out at the feet of an angel statue.
A couple of hours later, Marie wakes up and begins to panic. Even though the woman had no memory of how she got to the cemetery or the entire night, Marie knew that she had gotten out and punished the guilty.
Tears began running down Marie's face as she was overwhelmed with fear and the loss of control. She hadn't lost control in years. Marie soon came to her senses as she realized she needed to call Broom.
Marie silently prays as she pats the pockets of her leather jacket to feel her phone. Marie sighed in relief when she felt her phone in her right pocket. The woman quickly takes out her phone and flips it open before dialing Broom.
"Pick up, pick up, pick up," Marie said, waiting to hear Broom's voice.
"Marie, are you alright?" Broom asked.
"No," Marie sobbed. "I got out last night. I don't know how, but I did. I can't remember anything, but I can feel I had punished the guilty. I lost control, Professor. I'm scared."
Marie feels herself beginning to hyperventilate but tries to calm down. Broom becomes worried for his friend and can sense her fear.
"Marie, can you tell me where you are?" The Professor inquired.
"I'm at Calvary Cemetery in Queens," She replied.
"Stay calm, Marie. We'll be there shortly," Broom told her.
"Please hurry."
The call ended. Marie approaches her bike and leads it to the cemetery's gate. She patiently waits for Broom to arrive. It felt like an eternity before a black sedan and the B.P.R.D. garbage truck pulled up.
Broom and Clay exit the sedan, while Moss and Quarry exit the garbage truck. Broom looks at Marie with worry before approaching her. The two meet in the middle before hugging. Marie choked up, and Broom rubbed her back.
"It's alright, my dear," Broom comforted Marie. When the hug ended, Broom placed a hand on her shoulder. "I contacted Reverend Mother and told her what happened. We'll stop by the convent and collect your things."
"Thank you," Matie said before she wiped her tears away.
"I should let you know that Manning is taking care of the public while other agents are taking care of the bodies."
The four men lead Marie to the garbage truck as she guides her bike. Moss pulls a lever on the vehicle. The back lowers like a drawbridge, revealing Hellboy and Abe sitting and looking at her.
"Good morning, Marie," Abe greeted while Hellboy remained silent.
"Morning," Marie returned before leading her motorcycle into the garbage truck.
Marie puts down the stick stand before taking a seat beside Abe.
"We'll be heading to St. Jude's before returning home," Broom informed Hellboy and Abe. "After last night's incident, Marie will be moving into the B.P.R.D."
"Thank you for telling us, Professor," Abe said.
"You're welcome, Abe."
The Professor walks away as the back of the garbage truck goes up. The three sat in silence in the B.P.R.D. vehicle as it moved.
During the drive, Hellboy leaned back and tried to get some sleep after being woken up so early in the morning while Abe attempted to talk to Marie. But the woman didn't want to talk. She was depressed about what happened last night. All she wanted to do was forget that it ever happened.
Meanwhile, in the sedan, Professor Broom knew something was wrong with Marie. She hasn't lost control since her powers surfaced years ago. The Professor suspected Rasputin may have had a hand in her loss of control.
After a few miles, the sedan and garbage truck arrive at St. Jude's Catholic Church and Convent. The two vehicles parked in the back of the building to avoid being seen by the public. When Marie exits the back of the garbage truck with Hellboy and Abe, she sees Monsignor Thomas and Reverend Mother standing and looking at her with concern.
Reverend Mother holds her hand to Marie, "Come, dear, let's get you inside."
Marie accepts before she walks inside the building with Reverend Mother and the men. The group passes a few nuns, who look at Marie with the same worry and concern the Professor, Monsignor, and Reverend Mother had. They didn't look at Marie like they were scared of her. Hellboy and Abe could tell the sisters cared for Marie and saw her as family. It reminded Hellboy of how his father looked at him. It made the half-demon man sympathize with Marie.
At one point, Marie and Monsignor Thomas break off from the rest of the group. Before Hellboy could ask where Marie and Monsignor were going, Reverend Mother stopped and turned to Professor Broom and the other men.
"I will lead you gentlemen to Marie's room so you can collect her things," Reverend Mother said before she continued leading the men.
It was a short walk before the men arrived at Marie's room. When Reverend Mother opens the door, the men, except Professor Broom, enter.
"Hm, she's got good taste," Hellboy commented, looking at Marie's music collection. He saw that she had rock 'n roll albums and cassettes filled with songs from the 1950s to the 1980s.
"A couple of the sisters brought in empty boxes for you gentlemen to pack Marie's things in," Reverend Mother gestures to the cardboard boxes on the bed. "And you don't have to worry about packing her clothes and, um, undergarments. The sisters have already placed them in a box."
"Thanks for the heads up, Reverend Mother," Hellboy said before he, Abe, and the other B.P.R.D. agents worked on packing up Marie's belongings.
As the men pack Marie's belongings, the room loses its character and Marie's sense of style. They removed the two corkboards covered with polaroids, emptied the bookcases, and packed the vinyl records, cassette tapes, walkman, record player, and her other possessions.
Hellboy goes to the nightstand to pack the four framed pictures. The half-demon picks the photograph of a young Marie, her father, and her mother. He looks at the picture with sadness, knowing what he knows about Marie. After a few seconds, Hellboy carefully places the picture and the two others in the box.
Once finished, the men picked up the boxes. Clay, Moss, Quarry, and Abe each decided to carry one, while Hellboy had two. As they walk to the garbage truck, Hellboy says something to Reverend Mother.
"Hey, Reverend Mother, I got a question to ask you," Hellboy said.
"Ask away, my child," She responded.
"Where did Marie and the Padre go off to?" He asked.
"Confession," Reverend Mother replied.
Meanwhile, Marie kneeled as Monsignor Thomas sat in the confessional booth, the doors shut and the panel open. Monsignor Thomas is taking Marie's confession.
The two make the sign of the cross as they say, "In nomine Patris, et Filii, et Spiritus Sancti. Amen."
"Bless me, Father, for I have sinned. It has been one week since my last confession," Marie said. "These are my sins. Last night, I killed people."
"Marie, you were not in control of yourself," Monsignor Thomas told her. "Professor Broom believes something had triggered Zarathos, causing you to go out and punish the guilty. My child, there are people alive today because of you. God has given you a gift, even though you may not see it as such."
"Yeah, a gift that only cost me my mama and soul," She scoffed.
"Marie, as your penance, I want you to continue your work with the B.P.R.D. Continue protecting people from the evil that hides in the shadows. I'm also assigning you six Hail Marys and ten Lord's prayers."
"My God, I am sorry for my sins with all my heart. In choosing to do wrong and failing to do good, I have sinned against you, whom I should love above all things. I firmly intend, with your help, to do penance, to sin no more, and to avoid whatever leads me to sin. Our Savior, Jesus Christ, suffered and died for us. In his name, my God, have mercy," Marie spoke the Act of Contrition.
After Marie finished making her Act of Contrition, Monsignor Thomas begins the prayer of absolution over her, "God, the Father of mercies, through the death and resurrection of his Son has reconciled the world to himself and sent the Holy Spirit among us for the forgiveness of sins; through the ministry of the Church may God give you pardon and peace, and I absolve you from your sins in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit."
As the Monsignor makes the Sign of the Cross over Marie, she makes the Sign of the Cross on herself. When he finished the prayer, Marie responded, "Amen."
"Give thanks to the Lord for He is good."
"For His mercy endures forever."
The Monsignor concludes, "The Lord has freed you from your sins. Go in peace."
"Thanks be to God," Marie responded.
The two make the sign of the cross as they say, "In nomine Patris, et Filii, et Spiritus Sancti. Amen."
Marie and Monsignor Thomas exit the confessional booth before hugging. They then walk to the back of the building. The two exit the back door, and Marie notices all the sisters of St. Jude are there to wish her luck and say their goodbyes. Professor Broom, Clay, Moss, Quarry, Hellboy, and Abe stand by the garbage truck.
Sister Mary Patrick steps forward, trying not to cry, but is failing, "Oh, I promised myself I wasn't going to cry. Marie, we're all going to miss you so very much. You have been such a hoot. We hope that you'll have fun at the B.P.R.D. and that you'll visit us very often."
"I will, Mary Patrick," Marie smiled before hugging the nun.
Sister Mary Lazarus steps forward, "Marie, this place just won't be the same without you. Now, stay safe and try to visit. Oh, and when you do visit, be sure to bring that young man with you."
Sister Mary Lazarus smiles and gives a little wave to Hellboy. The half-demon man nervously chuckles.
"I'll be sure to do that," Marie smiled. "I'm going to miss all of you so much. You are all like family to me. I'll treasure the time I've spent here at St. Jude's."
Marie, Reverend Mother, Monsignor Thomas, and all the Sisters move closer and do a group hug. After a few seconds, the hug ended.
Monsignor Thomas, Reverend Mother, and the Sisters wave goodbye to Marie as she enters the back of the garbage truck with Abe and Hellboy. Marie waved goodbye to them before the back of the garbage truck went up.
It broke Marie's heart to say goodbye to the home she had known for years. This was the second time Marie had to leave one home for another because of her powers. She had left her childhood home to live at St. Jude's when her powers first surfaced. Now, Marie is leaving the home she thought would help her control her powers because she lost control.