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Cover Dates: December 2008 & January 2009
On Sale Dates: October 2008 & November 2008
Writers: Craig Kyle & Christopher Yost
Artist: Mike Choi
Letterer: VC's Cory Petit
Colorist: Sonia Oback
Editor: John Barber
Executive Editor: Axel Alonso
Editor In Chief: Joe Quesada
On Sale Dates: October 2008 & November 2008
Writers: Craig Kyle & Christopher Yost
Artist: Mike Choi
Letterer: VC's Cory Petit
Colorist: Sonia Oback
Editor: John Barber
Executive Editor: Axel Alonso
Editor In Chief: Joe Quesada
Cover Artist: Mike Choi
Later that night, Proudstar wakes up in bandages, wondering why he is still alive. Sitting across from him on a fallen tree log is Ghost Rider, who tells Warpath to gather his strength. Tonight, he's going to show him how to kill a demon. Ghost Rider explains to Proudstar the history of his native people, who knew about the threat they face before they were all killed. Proudstar's birthright connects him to the spirit forces, but because he is no shaman he doesn't know how to access his power. Ghost Rider offers to show Proudstar how to touch the dead and fight spirits such as the Demon Bear. The Bear is filled with darkness so thick that Ghost Rider admits even he does not truly understand it, but they can still kill it. As he paints marks on Proudstar's face, Ghost Rider tells him that he will become the monster slayer, and that other tribes had a name for this religion - they called it the Ghost Dance.
Warpath and Ghost Rider confront the Demon Bear, who is mad with rage. The two heroes attack, and Proudstar finds that he is finally able to strike the Bear, unlike during his previous fight with the monster. The Demon Bear knocks the two heroes aside, and Ghost Rider comments that the beast fights like it is insane or in great pain. As the Bear attempts to devour Proudstar with its jaws, Ghost Rider sees a skull-headed demon blade stabbed into the Bear's hide - it has been wounded and poisoned by dark magic. While Ghost Rider binds the Bear with his chain, Warpath grabs the demon blade and pulls it free. The Demon Bear transforms into its true form, the Spirit Guides, Gods of the Apache. The knife had corrupted them, driving them mad with magic. The spirit gods rush forward and show Proudstar a vision of their suffering and the face of their enemy.
Later, Proudstar reunites with his X-Force teammates at the Angel's home in Colorado. He tells them that Eli Bard is responsible for digging up and taking his tribe, including the body of his brother. James doesn't want to be a killer, but now he has no choice.
Outside Camp Verde, an abandoned Native American reservation in Arizona, the X-Force member James "Warpath" Proudstar is attacked by an immense supernatural force called "The Demon Bear". Warpath attempts to fight, but finds that he is unable to touch the creature - the Bear, on the other hand, easily swats Proudstar onto a nearby cliff-face. Ninety-seven miles away, traveling by motorcycle across a desolate highway, John Blaze hears the Demon Bear's roar. Blaze puts the breaks on and transforms into the Ghost Rider. Warpath continues his attempts to fight the Demon Bear, but is hopelessly outmatched. While pinned down between the beast's claws, he notices a skull-headed dagger sticking out of the Bear's shoulder. Before the Bear can kill the mutant, Ghost Rider speeds by, taking Proudstar along with him as he races towards the horizon.
Later that night, Proudstar wakes up in bandages, wondering why he is still alive. Sitting across from him on a fallen tree log is Ghost Rider, who tells Warpath to gather his strength. Tonight, he's going to show him how to kill a demon. Ghost Rider explains to Proudstar the history of his native people, who knew about the threat they face before they were all killed. Proudstar's birthright connects him to the spirit forces, but because he is no shaman he doesn't know how to access his power. Ghost Rider offers to show Proudstar how to touch the dead and fight spirits such as the Demon Bear. The Bear is filled with darkness so thick that Ghost Rider admits even he does not truly understand it, but they can still kill it. As he paints marks on Proudstar's face, Ghost Rider tells him that he will become the monster slayer, and that other tribes had a name for this religion - they called it the Ghost Dance.
Warpath and Ghost Rider confront the Demon Bear, who is mad with rage. The two heroes attack, and Proudstar finds that he is finally able to strike the Bear, unlike during his previous fight with the monster. The Demon Bear knocks the two heroes aside, and Ghost Rider comments that the beast fights like it is insane or in great pain. As the Bear attempts to devour Proudstar with its jaws, Ghost Rider sees a skull-headed demon blade stabbed into the Bear's hide - it has been wounded and poisoned by dark magic. While Ghost Rider binds the Bear with his chain, Warpath grabs the demon blade and pulls it free. The Demon Bear transforms into its true form, the Spirit Guides, Gods of the Apache. The knife had corrupted them, driving them mad with magic. The spirit gods rush forward and show Proudstar a vision of their suffering and the face of their enemy.
Later, Proudstar reunites with his X-Force teammates at the Angel's home in Colorado. He tells them that Eli Bard is responsible for digging up and taking his tribe, including the body of his brother. James doesn't want to be a killer, but now he has no choice.