The Midnight Sons Were Nothing but a Rabble

At the Sanctum Sanctorum's dining hall, the magic-side superheroes Strange had summoned gathered together to discuss how to deal with Mephisto's scheme after he had slipped into the Earth-616 universe. Strange began by explaining the entire incident.

"First, we can be certain that after Mephisto came to our world, he basically did not contact any cultists or similar forces, nor did he cultivate any power of his own—unless you count Ghost Rider."

Strange did not look at Ghost Rider as he spoke, and Johnny did not see any problem with it. He simply kept listening. Strange continued, "Mephisto used his magic to make a fortune in Las Vegas, then spent a few short months trading stocks. In the end, he accumulated a massive amount of Roxxon Energy Corporation stock."

At that, Strange paused and looked at Peter. Peter hurriedly picked up the thread. "According to what the Avengers have learned, Roxxon Energy Corporation's president, Aggar, has been working with Malekith of the Mist Kingdom, Loki of Asgard, and others. They formed a faction in an attempt to rule the entire Nine Realms. Furthermore, like The Hand, Roxxon Energy Corporation is one of Hydra's subordinate organizations."

A.I.M., The Hand, Roxxon Energy Corporation—and of course, one could not forget S.H.I.E.L.D. and the many factions within the Soviet Union that had already been brought down. Aside from its own core organization, Hydra had cultivated a great many subsidiary groups. Those groups possessed considerable independence and could carry out all kinds of activities relatively autonomously. Quite a few had even become semi-independent organizations with a mutually exploitative relationship with Hydra.

Take Roxxon Energy Corporation, for example. It had made such a huge mess and had even gotten involved with Malekith. Its influence had already exceeded Hydra's control. To say Hydra fully supported this Dark