Marvel Magic Case Files

Chapter 1377 Hillock Highlands (First Update)

Robbie Reyes, though a handsome young Latino with a cool Dodge Charger, wasn't foolish enough to hit on a Pornhub star on the street. He lived in San Fernando simply because it was a melting pot of people, making it easy to conceal his identity, and it was only a 45-minute drive from Hilllock Heights in East Los Angeles, allowing him to visit his brother at school or home anytime—Hilllock Heights was rife with corruption and crime, and Robbie Reyes was genuinely worried about his brother's daily life as a wheelchair-bound disabled person attending school. In fact, he was even uneasy about Gabe Reyes going to and from school independently; those street thugs would surely love to harass a disabled person who couldn't fight back. Robbie Reyes had experienced that kind of life; he knew those scumbags had no conscience whatsoever. The only language they understood was violence, and the common language of Hilllock Heights was violence.

After he was released by the emperor, the evil spirit possessing him took over for a period of time.

Robbie Reyes's spirit only regained control of his body after his spirit, guided by intuition, found a clue to the Dark Book. "I have urgent business to attend to," he muttered, jerking the steering wheel and using the momentum to swerve his Dodge into the opposite lane. "I need to see Gabe. No… only my brother right now, otherwise all our agreements are null and void. You want me to seize control while you're on a mission, you demon? Do you really want that? I'm telling you, I need to make sure Gabe is safe! I haven't seen him in a long time, all because of that… I won't say his name. But to me, your mission is less important than Gabe!"

Before Robbie Reyes became Ghost Rider and became involved with S.H.I.E.L.D. and the Emperor, he was repeatedly sighted on the streets as Ghost Rider, carrying out missions against local crime syndicates. Although this was merely Robbie Reyes's way of settling old scores with the Reyes family and the car accident that crippled Gabe Reyes, the terrifying legends of Ghost Rider and the numerous gangsters burned to ashes served as a stark reminder to the underworld that Hillock Heights was no longer a safe haven for criminal organizations.

He hadn't completely eradicated the criminal syndicates of Hilllock Heights; evil remained, which was why he was so worried about Gabe Reyes' safety. He couldn't imagine how much bullying his brother would suffer on his way to and from school, whether he'd be robbed, or whether someone would try to break into the house because there was only a disabled person inside. Robbie had expected to see a chaotic Hilllock Heights, but the reality was quite the opposite—the Mexican drug dealers who used to drive around selling small packets of drugs were gone, and the Ghost Rider murals painted by street artists had been replaced by the white-haired woman in black power armor, wielding a large-caliber gun, whom Robbie Reyes had seen in the Immortal City.

As he passed a criminal hideout near his home, he found the once-brick and stone buildings reduced to charred ruins, as if the area had once been a battlefield. By questioning Latinos (who spoke Spanish) who also lived in Hilllock Heights, Robbie Reyes learned that around the night of his release, numerous explosions had occurred. Initially, the residents of Hilllock Heights assumed it was a gang shootout, nothing unusual, and the police wouldn't bother. However, the explosions continued unabated; those with military experience said they were the sounds of mortars and howitzers, along with the sharp, metallic screeching of tracks crushing vehicles. Some of the bolder young men even saw large groups of white-haired women in power armor marching in formation through the burning streets, shredding most of the resisting gang members to pieces with buzzing, giant chainsaws. They moved at high speed through the community, gliding between different gang hideouts, their mechanical wings propelling them through the complex.

Hillock Highlands are safe for now.

No one knows when those white-haired death messengers will arrive, but at least those children manipulated by gangs to sell small bags of drugs have disappeared from the streets. Moreover, it is said that someone has donated stationery, books and scientific instruments to the local community public school and provided subsidies to children in the community who have dropped out of school, on the condition that they attend school every day and do not miss classes.

"I know, stop talking." Robbie Reyes seemed to be muttering to himself in the car, but he was actually communicating with a whisper in his head. "I know it's in the contract, but I need to see Gabe first. He's disabled; he has trouble even going to the toilet by himself. How can I trust him?"

"Six months ago, a gang shootout took place in Hillrock Heights." Agent Coulson flipped through the data panel. Gathering local rumors upon arrival is a fundamental principle of the age-old profession of espionage, and in the information age, this process is no longer limited to asking farmers or mercenaries; everything can be seen simply by picking up a phone. "Although it was a gang shootout, local police found 106.7mm shells from an M30 heavy mortar at the scene." Seemingly due to the vivid performance of the Stand, Agent Coulson had unconsciously come to regard it as a living person, even joking about it. He himself was this kind of person, and he knew the true personality of the person controlling the Stand—definitely not the boring, dull, and serious person outsiders imagined, like a gray fortress that refused to be visited.

"Besides you, I can't think of anyone else who would deploy these weapons within the United States. I haven't forgotten how you deployed the Gustav siege guns near the Tri-Wing during the Hydra rebellion. Were you planning to bury us all under the rubble back then? Should I thank you for not using the Gustav self-propelled siege guns in tiny Los Angeles?"

“Yes, if I fail to capture the three Sky Carriers, I will blow up the Tri-Wing headquarters and the Sky Carriers together.” The Precision Stand readily admitted his intention to murder the radical Hydra agents and all the loyal S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, which seemed to him to be no big deal. Agent Coulson knew he had asked the wrong question, and he hesitated between rolling down the driver's side window and changing the subject. “How did you know Robbie Reyes’s exact location?” He finally found a topic. “S.H.I.E.L.D. tried to track him through news and keyword searches. You know, every day there are a lot of small-time reporters and freelance photographers roaming the city, and their information is far more timely and comprehensive than the police. Even so, we lost track of Ghost Rider for a period of time.”

"I'm not tracking Robbie Reyes, I'm tracking the spirit that possesses him."

After answering the question, the Precision Stand fell silent again. Agent Coulson wasn't sure if the person controlling the Stand was busy with other matters, or if the Precision Stand was carrying out some kind of "tracking," as it couldn't roll down the car window and whistle and greet the stunning women passing by on the street as before. Knowing his personality, he would definitely continue his previous behavior; this silence, however, made Agent Coulson quite uneasy—because it could very well mean the Emperor was getting serious, and every time he took something seriously, it represented a disaster, or at least ended in a disaster of varying scale—"Don't worry, it's not as bad as you think," the Precision Stand said. "I'm just looking for Robbie Reyes."

"Stop reading my mind!" Agent Coulson began reciting the S.H.I.E.L.D. agent code, hoping to limit the information available to the person in the pilot's seat. Whether this method would be effective was unknown to Agent Coulson; it was simply a method he'd gleaned from reading novels. "Please focus on this. I hope we get back to Beacon Base as soon as possible."

Please vote for me!

(End of this chapter)