Chapter Summaries

Salomon staged a rift with Natasha to fool Nyarlathotep, then launched a surprise attack on Mathers Hopkins, whom he suspected was an avatar. He discovered that Hopkins was not the Nyarlathotep he had expected, but a grotesque manifestation claiming to be both Nyarlathotep and not Nyarlathotep.

• Salomon and Natasha emerged from an alley after performing a public quarrel to make Nyarlathotep believe its plan had divided them.
• Salomon left town with a stray dog while the Salem witch trials and accusations spread, and Cotton Mather crowded suspects into the prison.
• Salomon waited near the Dark Forest, then used a portal to reach a hidden alley in Salem and rush to Mathers Hopkins's residence.
• Salomon broke into Hopkins's bedroom and confronted him, but Hopkins said he had anticipated the attack and called Salomon an obvious lure.
• Mathers Hopkins tore open his cheeks, revealing yellow pus and maggots, and claimed he was Nyarlathotep yet was not Nyarlathotep.

After killing Mathers Hopkins, Salomon searched for Natasha and found Coulson and Jones hiding at Precy Farm. With the town alerted and the Witch Trials continuing, Salomon prepared to follow Jones toward the rat’s owner and confront Nyarlathotep.

• Salomon beheaded Mathers Hopkins, whose severed head continued speaking for Nyarlathotep before Salomon silenced it.
• Salomon searched Natasha’s room and found signs of a fight but no sign of where she had gone.
• Salomon found Coulson and Jones hiding in The Basement at Precy Farm, and Coulson believed Natasha had escaped to safety.
• Jones showed Salomon a half-eaten Man-Faced Rat and claimed it could lead them to its owner.
• Coulson told Salomon he had found an abandoned stone tower and built the altar there, while Salomon warned that the King's Army would soon hunt them.
• Salomon set out with Coulson and Jones, declaring that he would kill Nyarlathotep that night.

Salomon and Coulson searched the Dark Forest for the source of the town’s chaos and found Natasha Romanoff buried beneath fallen leaves. Unsure whether she was real or Nyarlathotep’s transformation, Salomon ordered Jones to wake her.

• Salomon escorted Coulson into the Dark Forest, where he explained that they might face a god responsible for the local witch coven and the spreading chaos.
• Jones led Salomon and Coulson to the abandoned witch coven site, where Salomon noticed that the monster corpses from his last visit had vanished.
• Jones dug Natasha Romanoff out of a shallow pit, and Coulson recognized her while Salomon warned she could be Nyarlathotep in disguise.
• Coulson argued that Natasha was real, but Salomon remained wary and told Jones to wake her.
• Natasha stirred and called out, “Who's there!”

Salomon confronted Nyarlathotep’s confusing double-identity riddle in the forest and chose to attack rather than keep questioning it. With Jones’s help, he pinned down The Dark One, though Nyarlathotep escaped the confrontation promising they would meet again.

• A second Natasha emerged from the bushes and claimed that Coulson’s soul was inside her body, while Coulson insisted she was an impostor.
• Salomon concluded the situation was likely Nyarlathotep’s elaborate deception and aimed his sword at Coulson, revealing The Dark One’s true form.
• The Dark One hinted that the figure on the ground was Coulson’s body and taunted Salomon about Natasha’s missing soul.
• Salomon attacked despite foreseeing his own death, and Jones bit The Dark One’s calf while Salomon struck its shoulder.
• The Dark One used seawater and poisonous vapor to keep Salomon and Coulson at bay, but Jones dragged it out of the gas.
• Salomon drove Excalibur through The Dark One’s spine and pinned it to the ground, while Nyarlathotep laughed and promised to meet him again.

Salomon stopped Nyarlathotep’s avatar from escaping, but the monster’s appearance drove Salem Town into widespread madness. At Randolph Carter’s residence, he learned that the ritual could proceed once Coulson and Romanoff recovered, and Carter explained that Abigail was one of many possibilities whose true counterpart had not yet been born.

• The Dark One revealed that Romanoff’s soul was in Coulson’s body and taunted Salomon before invoking Cthugha’s power and transforming into a monster.
• Salomon lost himself in visions of the creature until Randolph Carter pulled him back, then learned that Nyarlathotep had left and that Carter would care for Coulson and Romanoff.
• Salomon awoke at Randolph Carter’s residence and saw the King’s Army escorting prisoners through a Salem Town overwhelmed by madness and violence.
• Randolph told Salomon that he had switched Coulson and Romanoff’s souls back and proposed performing the ritual at the stone tower after they recovered.
• Randolph explained that Abigail was one possibility among many, and that Salomon’s future began with the choices he made and required him to pass through a door and understand final time.

Salomon and Randolph summoned Yog-Sothoth at the stone tower to end the fading Salem reality and rescue Abigail. The Ancient Immortal gave Salomon a Silver Key and spoke of his fate, and Salomon, Coulson, and Natasha returned to 2011.

• Randolph explained that one line of Salomon’s fate was predetermined and urged him to keep seeking knowledge until he could pass through the Ultimate Gate.
• Salomon learned the Flame Cloak spell from Randolph’s books, then answered Coulson and Natasha’s questions while keeping them from reading dangerous texts.
• Randolph took Salomon, Coulson, Natasha, and the unwell Abigail to the stone tower, warning that the reality was fading and this was the final reset.
• Randolph performed the Yog-Sothoth Invocation, and the Ancient Immortal appeared with Jones before giving Salomon a Silver Key and describing his path and fate.
• Coulson woke beside Natasha among the tower ruins, and Salomon welcomed them back to 2011.

Salomon returned from the alternate reality with Coulson and Natasha, then told the Venerable One that an evil god had left worshippers on Earth and that the Silver Key might reveal his fate and origins. The Venerable One revealed that the Witch had learned of his disappearance and rushed to find him.

• Salomon returned Coulson and Natasha to their own time and warned them not to speak the names of powerful beings.
• Salomon went to Kamar-Taj, where the Venerable One questioned him about Abigail Williams and the invasion from the Outer Dimensions.
• Salomon explained that an evil god with countless avatars had meddled with Earth and that they needed to eliminate its worshippers.
• Salomon showed the Venerable One the Silver Key and said it could reveal his fate, help him escape it, and lead him to the universe's ultimate truth.
• The Venerable One told Salomon that the Witch had rushed over in a panic after he disappeared.

Salomon tried to reassure Bayonetta after a dangerous mission, but she and Jeanne turned their anger into a plan to travel through Northern Europe without him. At S.H.I.E.L.D., Nick Fury questioned Salomon about the mission and the threat of evil-god cults, while Salomon refused to reveal the mission’s details.

• Bayonetta blamed Salomon for taking a dangerous mission without her, and Salomon proposed a European trip with Jeanne joining them.
• Jeanne returned, fired at Salomon for worrying Bayonetta, and planned a Northern European tour with Bayonetta, leaving Salomon to provide portals and meals.
• Salomon returned to Kamar-Taj, then met Nick Fury at S.H.I.E.L.D. to discuss the Merlin School and the deaths and disappearance from the earlier mission.
• Nick Fury questioned Salomon about Coulson and Natasha’s mental disturbance, and Salomon realized Fury was evaluating him as well as seeking the mission details.
• Salomon refused to explain the mission beyond linking it to an Outer Dimensions invasion and warned Fury that Kamar-Taj was hunting cults that worshipped evil gods.

Salomon confronted Nick Fury over whether he or Coulson had taken and read dangerous books from Randolph Carter’s library, and used magic to inspect Fury’s memories. Fury explained that he had only learned about the three-hundred-year time displacement and an Outer God, while Salomon revealed that Randolph Carter had ascended and left the universe with Abigail Williams.

• Salomon suspected Nick Fury’s unusual willingness to let the previous mission go and demanded to know what Coulson had taken from Randolph Carter’s library.
• Salomon had Phoenix restrain Nick Fury and extracted a memory with Mind Encoding, but found no evidence that Coulson had given Fury any books.
• Nick Fury said he had only learned from Coulson and Natasha that they had traveled through three hundred years and encountered an Outer God.
• Salomon explained that the journey involved a fragment of time rather than Salem’s actual past, and said Randolph Carter had left the universe with Abigail Williams for the ultimate abyss of another universe.
• Nick Fury asked about Salomon’s Silver Key and Kamar-Taj’s activity in Africa and Canada, but Salomon refused to share details and warned that reading an unabridged Outer God grimoire led to madness.

Salomon challenged Nick Fury over America’s history and denied that it fought for God, then threatened S.H.I.E.L.D. if its agents had taken forbidden books. Back at Eton College and Kamar-Taj, he continued his studies and preparations until a death at Kamar-Taj interrupted his routine.

• Salomon argued with Nick Fury that America was not worthy of respect and claimed it had not fought for God.
• Salomon demanded that Nick Fury guarantee Coulson and Natasha had not taken the books, threatening S.H.I.E.L.D. if they had.
• Nick Fury watched Salomon leave and decided he needed to accelerate his plan to gain strength against him.
• Salomon resumed his studies, practiced using Dormammu’s power, and helped expand Kamar-Taj’s magical methods.
• Salomon made more magical equipment and traveled through Northern Europe with Bayonetta and Jeanne before Kamar-Taj suffered its first casualty since his birth.

Salomon learned that Drake had been murdered by a creature from the Lower Planes and wanted to avenge him, but Mordo and the Sorcerer Supreme ordered him to stay away. The Sorcerer Supreme revealed that Mephisto had returned to Earth through a new Ghost Rider and warned Salomon that Mephisto coveted his soul.

• Salomon mourned Drake and asked Mordo whether the killer was a devil, demon, or another Lower Planes creature.
• Salomon said the killer might be connected to his Holy Marks and feared that one of the Seventy-Two Pillars of Demons had come to Earth.
• Mordo pulled Salomon from the morgue and told him to wait for orders rather than investigate the murder himself.
• The Sorcerer Supreme told Salomon that Mephisto had appeared on Earth and had found a new Ghost Rider to pursue his rebellious son, Blackheart.
• The Sorcerer Supreme ordered Salomon to stay out of the conflict because Mephisto wanted his soul and viewed him as a candidate for the Seventh Throne.

Salomon stayed away from Mephisto on the Sorcerer Supreme’s orders and enjoyed a weekend in the Norwegian countryside until Nick Fury called about Ghost Rider. He left the hunt to Kamar-Taj’s other Arcanists and advised Fury that Ghost Rider was a Spirit of Vengeance targeting the guilty.

• The Sorcerer Supreme warned Salomon that Mephisto could manipulate people into signing contracts and ordered him to leave the devil to Kamar-Taj’s stewards.
• Salomon returned to his Norwegian cabin, reasoning that his valuable soul made him a tempting target for Mephisto and that he would avoid the devil until he understood contracts and finance.
• Salomon enjoyed cooking Arctic char and planning weekend getaways with Bayonetta, while arranging for the Cheshire Cat to stay in New York with the Scottish Pixie.
• Nick Fury called Salomon about Johnny Blaze, whose burning skull and attacks had left SWAT bullets useless.
• Salomon refused to join the mission, saying Kamar-Taj’s other Arcanists would hunt devils and that Ghost Rider was a possessing spirit hunting devils rather than a devil himself.
• Salomon told Fury that Ghost Rider judged guilty souls under the Ten Commandments and suggested Captain America would be safe from him.

Salomon arranged for Captain America to face Ghost Rider, then returned to Eton College, where Mephisto offered to help him reclaim his contract from Belial and take the Seventh Throne. The chapter ended with Mephisto proposing a deal.

• Salomon told Jeanne that a Lower Plane Being invasion had caused a death at Kamar-Taj, then learned S.H.I.E.L.D. had arranged a fight between Captain America and Ghost Rider.
• Salomon watched the televised confrontation with Bayonetta and Jeanne, while Jeanne wedged herself between them when she suspected they were growing closer.
• After his weekend vacation, Salomon sent Bayonetta and Jeanne to Eastern Europe to hunt angels and returned alone to Eton College.
• Mephisto appeared in Salomon's chemistry laboratory and revealed that he had come in a powerless avatar.
• Mephisto offered to help Salomon take his contract back from Belial and claim the Seventh Throne, then proposed a deal.

Mephisto tried to recruit Salomon into a deal to remove Satan from the Seventh Throne, offering Steve Rogers’s soul as a reward if he fell into corruption. Salomon refused to sign, citing Mephisto’s inability to recover the contract binding his own soul, and revealed that he had other invitations.

• Mephisto accused Salomon of wanting to corrupt Steve Rogers and said the Captain’s faith had been shaken by the devil’s knight.
• Salomon admitted that he wanted Steve to find new convictions, though he believed Steve would not fall easily.
• Mephisto revealed that Satan’s son and daughter had been born and offered to help Salomon remove Satan from the Seventh Throne.
• Mephisto drafted a value-preserving contract and invited Salomon to join the Nine Hells Investment Company.
• Salomon refused to sign, pointing out that Mephisto could not recover his soul contract from Belial.
• Salomon displayed the Silver Key and told Mephisto that he had other invitations.

After Mephisto tried to recruit Salomon to claim Satan’s Throne, Salomon refused his offer and learned that The Living Tribunal had sent him to Salem to confront Shuma-Gorath. The Sorcerer Supreme warned that defeating the Eye Demon would require studying dark magic from another universe, even at the cost of Salomon’s sanity.

• Mephisto recognized the Silver Key and offered Salomon help in claiming the Seventh Throne, but Salomon rejected the deal while leaving room for future cooperation.
• After Salomon returned to Kamar-Taj, Mephisto revealed that Lucifer, Beelzebub, and other Hell Lords supported Salomon’s eventual rise against Marduk, then turned to deal with his son.
• Salomon confronted the Sorcerer Supreme about Yog-Sothoth, Shuma-Gorath, and The Living Tribunal’s reasons for sending him to Salem.
• The Sorcerer Supreme explained that Shuma-Gorath was a Great Old One from another universe and that Salomon had been chosen to drive it from the multiverse.
• The Sorcerer Supreme told Salomon to study dark magic from another universe, even if doing so risked his sanity.

Salomon worried that studying Dark Magic would destroy his sanity, so the Sorcerer Supreme explained how the Vishanti and Oshtur could protect him and directed him to seek help from Agatha Harkness. The chapter ended with the Sorcerer Supreme retiring for a nap while Salomon considered what information he could share with Agatha.

• Salomon told the Sorcerer Supreme that he feared losing his independent thoughts and sanity to Dark Magic.
• The Sorcerer Supreme explained that invoking Oshtur could protect Salomon’s mind and described the Vishanti’s responsibility for defending against threats from other dimensions.
• Salomon complained that Earth always seemed to face danger and rejected the idea of ruling humanity.
• The Sorcerer Supreme advised Salomon to speak with the Vishanti and meet Agatha Harkness, who had witnessed Abigail Williams’s loss of control and might know ways to preserve sanity.
• The Sorcerer Supreme explained that Agatha had noticed Salomon’s return from Salem and wanted to learn what had happened there.
• The Sorcerer Supreme ended the conversation to sleep and told Salomon to keep Mordo from disturbing her.

Salomon collected the magical cat outfit and weapons Rodin had made while waiting for Jeanne and Bayonetta to finish their work. He planned to take them back to New York, and left Rodin teasing him about his relationship with Bayonetta.

• Salomon returned to Eton College and planned to copy several useful spells into Kamar-Taj's spellbooks.
• Salomon opened a portal to Rodin's bar, where Rodin gave him the Cheshire Cat's enchanted outfit.
• Salomon discussed the transforming weapons Rodin had forged from his designs and considered commissioning more.
• Salomon asked where Enzo was and learned that it was Enzo's wedding anniversary.
• Rodin teased Salomon about Bayonetta and Jeanne, and Salomon insisted that there was only Bayonetta.

Salomon inspected a water elemental that had killed a Kamar-Taj Arcanist and learned that a powerful figure had summoned it, connecting the case to the Hellfire Club. The chapter left Salomon preparing to make the club his next target.

• Jeanne tested Luoyang, the twin blades forged by Rodin from the souls of Barnabas and Victoria, and used them to kill a Powers.
• Jeanne and Bayonetta teased Salomon at the bar, while Salomon wondered why Bayonetta had bruised him and postponed her sweet kiss.
• After classes, Salomon returned to Kamar-Taj and examined the restrained creature that had killed Drake.
• Mordo explained that the creature was a corrupted elemental from the Plane of Water, able to turn into water and travel through currents.
• Mordo revealed that the creature had been summoned by a powerful figure and linked the summoning to the Hellfire Club.
• Salomon declared that the Hellfire Club was his next target.

Salomon warned Mordo that the Ghost Rider was too dangerous for Kamar-Taj to capture, then explained that he had already met Mephisto without making any bargains. Later, he visited Coulson during S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Ghost Rider operation, where he asked for a book taken from Randolph Carter's bookshelf.

• Mordo questioned Salomon about his forehead bruise and scolded him over his past drinking with Cassilius.
• Salomon warned Mordo not to approach the Ghost Rider after dark, explaining that the Spirit of Vengeance judged people by the Ten Commandments and could burn away their souls.
• Salomon told Mordo that he had met Mephisto's human incarnation but had made no contracts or promises, and Mordo urged him to seek support if he encountered a demon again.
• Coulson offered to help Salomon get Captain America's autograph while S.H.I.E.L.D. monitored the hero during its Ghost Rider operation.
• Salomon told Coulson he had also come to retrieve the book Coulson had taken from Randolph Carter's bookshelf.

Salomon confronted Agent Coulson about S.H.I.E.L.D. keeping The Book of Eibon and warned that he would destroy the organization if its contents spread. He then learned S.H.I.E.L.D. planned to capture Ghost Rider, whose target was the same son of the Lord of Hell that Salomon was pursuing.

• Salomon told Coulson he knew The Book of Eibon was in Cold Storage 5-1-084-A1 and demanded its return.
• Coulson agreed to give Salomon the book the next day, while Salomon warned that he would destroy Triskelion Headquarters if S.H.I.E.L.D. kept a copy.
• Salomon and Coulson discussed their different approaches to danger, with Coulson defending his belief that killing was not the only solution.
• Coulson told Salomon that Agent Hand planned to capture Ghost Rider, Johnny Blaze, with a disguised field team.
• Salomon warned that the team should prepare urns for their ashes and revealed that Ghost Rider was pursuing the son of the Lord of Hell, Salomon's own target.