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Ghost Rider #1 2006 Way Texeira Saltares

HOPE.  YES… YESSSSS! IT’S THE DEVILS FAVORITE POISON.

HE DANGLES IT IN FRONT OF ME…. KKKRRRRRRRRKKKK..! GETS ME TO RUN FOR IT…. …ONLY TO SNATCH IT AWAY AT THE VERY LAST MOMENT. NO. 

SUCKER.

AND I FALL FOR IT EVERY… DAMN… …TIME. NNNNOOOOOOOO!

MY LORD, TO WITNESS YOUR GREATNESS IS A BLESSING—AND YET ALSO A CURSE— TO KNOW THAT ONE SUCH AS MYSELF COULD NEVER HOPE TO ACHIEVE SUCH PERFECTION.

YES, WELL… … I DO TAKE GREAT PLEASURE IN MY WORK.

OF COURSE YOU DO, MY LORD… AS WELL YOU SHOULD. AND MAY I ALSO SAY, MY LORD, THAT YOUR MANIPULATION OF THE GHOST RIDER IS MASTERFUL… TRULY MASTERFUL.

I TIRE OF YOUR WITLESS FAWNING. I AM WELL AWARE OF MY SUPERIORITY ESPECIALLY IN MATTERS OF MANIPULATION. I MUST ADMIT, HOWEVER, IN THE CASE OF THE GHOST RIDER IN PARTICULAR… WELL… “…I DO KNOW JUST HOW TO PULL HIS STRINGS.”

FACE IT JOHNNY… …YOU’RE NEVER GETTING OUT OF HELL. THE DEVIL WON. HE BEAT YOU. NO! I’M NOT BEATEN. I’M NOT DONE—KROOOOM 

YET…?

HHHEEEEEEEEE--!? HLGK

ENJOYING THE SHOW, YOU SICK LITTLE FREAK?

NO—NO—PLEASE—! I’M NOT—!

NOT WHAT? NOT HERE TO WITNESS MY PAIN AND SUFFERING AND REPORT BACK TO YOUR MASTER ALL ABOUT IT? SO THAT HE CAN HAVE A GOOD LAUGH? WELL TELL HIM THIS, DEMON: TELL HIM TO GO—

NO, I’M N— --URGK!  I W-WASN’T SPYING ON YOU! I-I GOT LOST! I… OH, MAN—OH, NO! PLEASE—PLEASE HELP ME!

HELP YOU…?

THEY’RE COMING!

GOOD. LET’EM COME. I’M SICK OF RUNNING. WHAT—?

SAVE ME! SAVE ME, PLEASE! SAVE ME AND I’LL—HWWAAAGH!

THEY’RE NOT AFTER ME… … THEY’RE AFTER HIM.

I’LL TAKE YOU WITH ME! I CAN DIG US OUTTA HEEEEERE!

HOPE.

LORD SATAN! THE ESCAPEE HAS BEEN CAPTURED MY LORD.

GREEXIX, GREEXIX, GREEXIX… … YOU PUTRID, DISGUSTING SLUG.IF YOU HAD SIMPLY TOLD ME THAT YOU NO LONGER WISHED TO SERVE IN THE PIT, I WOULD’VE GLADLY RELOCATED YOU. BUT INSTEAD, YOU RAN AWAY.

I—I—I…I’M SORRY, LORD SATAN. I—

NO, GREEXIX I DON’T THINK YOU TRULY ARE SORRY… BUT YOU WILL BE…

LORD SATAN—PLEASE! I’M BEGGING YOU… PLEASE LISTEN! I—I DID’NT RUN AWAY! I JUST… I GOT LOST! I WAS DIGGING, MY LORD, DOING WHAT YOU TOLD ME TO DO! EXPANDING THE PIT! BUT THEN… MY EYES! I—I’M ALMOST COMPLETELY BLIND AND—AND I JUST GOT LOST!

“LOST”? WELL THEN GREEXIX… …THIS WAS OBVIOUSLY JUST A GROSS MISUNDERSTANDING! BUT I’M STILL GOING TO HAVE YOU TORTURED.

NO! NNNNOOOOOOOO!

MY LORD… THERE IS SOMETHING ELSE YOU SHOULD KNOW. WHEN THEY FOUND GREEXIX… … HE WAS SPEAKING WITH THE GHOST RIDER.

HEH—HEH… C’MON YOU LOWLY PIT SCUM…

HEY! TAKE IT EASY!

HUH…?

I HAVE ABSOLUTELY NO PLAN, HERE. FFFFWWWWOOOOOOOOMMMMMM! CHINK! BUT THIS WORKED OUT PRETTY GOOD FOR THEM, SO… I’LL WORK THE REST OUT LATER.

GGAAAAAAAHHHH!

C’MON JOHNNY… THINK!

AAAAAAHHHH!

KKKRRRRRRRRKK..!

IT’S… IT’S YOU! Y—YOU SAVED ME!... DID YOU SAVE ME?

NO. NOT YET. GET BACK THERE AND HOLD ON!

I—I CAN’T! MY ARMS ARE TOO SHORT!

OH, FOR…

WHERE ARE WE GOING?

TO THE PIT!

THE PIT? NO!

I DON’T WANNA GO BACK DOWN INTO THE PIT!

WE’RE NOT GOING INTO THE PIT—--WE’RE GOING OVER IT! FWWWWWOOOOOOOMMMMM!

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!

K-BOOOM!

HNNNNGG…

DAMN. ALL THAT DID WAS BUY US TIME—THEY’RE ALREADY MAKING THEIR WAY AROUND.

LOOK AROUND… DO YOU SEE SOME MOUNTAINS?

YEAH.

OKAY… YOU SHOULD BE ABLE TO SEE A CAVE. IT’S RIGHT—

I SEE IT. LET’S ROLL TUBBY.

DID THEY SEE US COME UP HERE? ARE THEY FOLLOWING US?

NO.

OH, MAN… GEEZ… THANKS, MAN—I MEAN REALLY. OK, SO… THIS CAVE? THIS’LL LEAD DOWNWARD. WE’LL GO DOWN AS FAR AS WE CAN, THEN I’LL START DIGGING. IT SHOULDN’T TAKE LONG—I THINK WE’RE ACTUALLY PRETTY CLOSE TO THE BOUNDARY.

THERE’S A BOUNDARY?

YEP, SURE IS… … EVERYBODY ASSUMES THAT THERE IS’NT ONE—ACTUALLY, YOU’D BE SURPRISED AT HOW MUCH OF AN EFFECT PEOPLE’S ASSUMPTIONS HAVE ON THIS PLACE. I MEAN, HAVEN’T YOU EVER THOUGHT IT WAS KINDA FUNNY THAT HELL LOOKS PRETTY MUCH EXACTLY HOW YOU THOUGHT IT WOULD?

NO. I DON’T THINK IT’S FUNNY AT ALL.

WELL, NO… NO, ME NEITHER, BUT… HE USES IT AGAINST US, OKAY? LUCIFER, I MEAN. DECEPTION—THAT’S HIS POWER. THAT’S HIS ONLY POWER. I MEAN, HE’S NOT GOD, YOU KNOW? THAT’S WHY HE USES PEOPLE TO GET WHAT HE WANTS—IT’S BECAUSE HE CAN’T GET IT HIMSELF. PEOPLE LIKE ME. HE’S HAD ME DOWN IN THE PIT FOR… MAN, I CAN’T EVEN REMEMBER HOW LONG I’VE BEEN DOWN THERE. HE MADE ME DIG, EXPANDING IT AND MAKING IT DEEPER SO THAT HE COULD FIT MORE SOULS DOWN IN THERE. ONE DAY, I JUST COULDN’T TAKE IT ANYMORE, SO I ESCAPED. I DUG MY WAY OUTTA THERE. AND THAT’S WHEN I FOUND IT: WATER.

BUT… THERE’S NO WATER IN…

EXACTLY.  I TRIED TO FOLLOW IT, BUT I GOT LOST—MY EYES… BUT YOU’RE GONNA HELP ME OUT, RIGHT? SO WE CAN BOTH ESCAPE?

YEAH. NO. YOU’RE A DEMON. YOU’RE IN HELL BECAUSE YOU DESERVE TO BE IN HELL.

PROMISE?

AND THAT’S WHY I DON’T FEEL THE LEAST BIT GUILTY ABOUT LYING TO YOU.

YOU SHOULDN’T LIE, JOHNNY… …IT’S A SIN. YOU REALLY DO FALL FOR IT EVERY TIME, DON’T YOU? SEE YOU ON THE OTHER SIDE… SUCKER.

OH, LOOK, HONEY—DOLPHINS!

I DUNNO BABE… ARE THOSE DOLPHINS? THEY KINDA LOOK LIKE—

“AND THE SEA GAVE UP THE DEAD WHICH WERE IN IT… AND DEATH AND HELL GAVE UP THE DEAD WHICH WERE IN THEM… …AND THEY WERE JUDGED EVERY MAN ACCORDING TO THEIR WORKS.” REVELATIONS, 20:13