—Zarathos[source]You possess weapons that fate has chosen for you... soulbound weapons that await you across time, of which you've as yet know nothing. Accept these gifts and enter my service. In exchange, I ask only the destruction of Calphael. What say you, soldiers? Will you watch your world fall to darkness... or will you be my hunters?
The Hellhunters were a covert supernatural task force assembled during World War II to confront a rising tide of occult threats emerging from within the Axis Powers. Formed in 1944, the team united soldiers, mystics, mutants, and spirits under a single brutal cause—stopping demonic entities from consuming the Earth.[2]
History
The group began with Sgt. Sal Romero, whose fateful mission behind enemy lines brought him face-to-face with Felix Bruckner, a young Nazi officer possessed by an ancient evil. Romero was transformed into Ghost Rider, becoming the team's spiritual anchor and vengeful weapon of retribution.[3] Joining Romero was Sgt. Nick Fury, Peggy Carter, an elite spy; and Sebastian Szardos, the Soldier Supreme, a magically empowered fusion of soldier and sorcerer. Together, they formed the initial lineup of the Hellhunters, launched to stop supernatural Nazi operations.[3] As the war raged on, the team encountered Canadian soldier; Logan on a mutilated battlefield, surrounded by the remnants of a slaughtered Nazi unit. Though feral and distrustful, Logan aligned with the team out of shared purpose.[4]
Tensions rose when Captain America questioned the team's increasingly ruthless methods. The addition of Bucky Barnes, only 15 years old but already hardened by war, pushed the ethical boundaries further. Bucky quickly proved himself a lethal operative, especially as the team prepared to face Calphael, a cosmic Nazi Hellspawn.[5] The group later uncovered the existence of the Unhallowed, a demonic force threatening to overrun Earth, and sought the guidance of Zarathos, the primordial Spirit of Vengeance, to tip the scales. He granted them a portion of his infernal power. Their transformations symbolized their fates: Bucky's left arm was consumed by flame; Fury’s left eye was engulfed in fire; Peggy manifested a shield; and Logan's claws were consumed by flame. This alliance emboldened their assault against Bruckner and the legions of the damned.[1] In the climactic confrontation, the Hellhunters engaged in a brutal final battle against Felix Bruckner, now fully merged with demonic power, and the infernal Unhallowed. With hellfire and fury, the team stood as Earth's last hope against annihilation.[6]Trivia
- When transformed by Zarathos, the Hellhunters' enhancements reflect their futures:
- Bucky's left arm is consumed in flame, foreshadowing his future as the Winter Soldier
- Fury's left eye is consumed in flame, foreshadowing its loss
- Peggy manifests a shield, alluding to her Variants across the Multiverse
- Logan's claws are consumed in flame, foreshadowing their Adamantium coating
- Alternatively, it could be a reference to his flaming claws in the aftermath of his resurrection
See Also
- 2 appearance(s) of Hellhunters (Earth-616)
- 1 mention(s) of Hellhunters (Earth-616)
- 6 image(s) of Hellhunters (Earth-616)
- 6 member(s) of Hellhunters (Earth-616)