Rise of the Midnight Sons The team is formed by Ghost Riders,
Danny Ketch and
Johnny Blaze after Ghost Rider receives a vision in which he learns that
Lilith, Mother of All Demons (
not Dracula's daughter, another Marvel character of the same name) is being resurrected and poses a great threat. She plans to use her demon children, the Lilin, to take over Earth. Though Lilith has many children, she has four children who are very loyal to her. Their names are Pilgrim, Nakota, Meatmarket, and the most powerful of the four,
Blackout, Ghost Rider's old enemy (Blackout was not an actual child of Lilith originally, but rather a grandchild. He was later killed and Lilith gave birth to Blackout along with her other children, thus indeed making him one of her actual children). Though she would have a lot more of her children to help her, the rest had forsaken Lilith. After she is imprisoned, many of the Lilin are either scattered or killed. Those who are scattered forget the ways of Lilith and move on with their lives, except Lilith's most faithful servants. The team consists of the
Nightstalkers (
Eric Brooks / Blade,
Frank Drake and
Hannibal King)
Morbius, the Living Vampire, the Spirits of Vengeance (
Danny Ketch / Ghost Rider,
Johnny Blaze / Ghost Rider, and later
Michael Badilino / Vengeance), and the guardians of the
Darkhold, the
Darkhold Redeemers (Sam Buchanan,
Victoria Montesi, Louise Hastings, and later
Modred the Mystic and Jinx). While secretly assembling the team and the sub-teams within, from behind the scenes,
Doctor Strange does not officially join the team until the Siege of Darkness storyline.
Midnight Massacre The second major meeting between the Midnight Sons occurs when Blade, with a page from the Darkhold, becomes the demonic creature Switchblade. He kills most of the Midnight Sons, subsequently taking on the power and weapons of each. He is finally stopped when Louise Hastings uses a counter spell from the Darkhold.
Siege of Darkness The "Siege of Darkness" consists of two subsequent stories in which the Midnight Sons fight groups connected with villains Lilith and
Zarathos. In the first story arc, covers were black with vague outlines, and the Midnight Sons fight the Lilin, who are invading the earth in a mysterious smoke emanating from Cypress Hills Cemetery. This arc include the Lilin characters Bad Timing, Martine Bancroft, Blackout, Dark Legion, Meatmarket, Nakota, Outcast, Pilgrim, Sister Nil, Stonecold, and Bloodthirst, who is possessing Morbius. In the second story arc, covers featured a dripping blood design, and the Midnight Sons fight The Fallen, a group loyal to Zarathos. The Fallen include Atrocity, Embyrre, Metarchus, Patriarch, and Salomé.
The Lilin At the beginning of the story, Ghost Rider and Blaze tell the Nightstalkers, the Darkhold Redeemers, and Morbius that they have killed Lilith and Zarathos. The Nightstalkers, who are skeptical, investigate but find mist containing Lilin now emanating from Cypress Hills Cemetery. As the other Midnight Sons join the fight, they discover that, instead of killing Lilith and Zarathos, Ghost Rider and Blaze have opened a portal to Shadowside where the Lilin had been exiled. They split into two groups, one led by Ghost Rider and one led by Morbius.
Caretaker, Doctor Strange and Vengeance also join the fight. Caretaker claims Zarathos is more powerful and they must protect the Medallion of Power. Doctor Strange teleports Ghost Rider's group to his
Sanctum Sanctorum. They find out from some Lilin that Morbius' team has a traitor. The team following Morbius, which includes Louise Hastings, hide out in one of Morbius' old labs. Louise Hastings finds out Morbius has been infected by Lilin blood, and Morbius secretly kills her. Morbius has been taken over by the Lilin Bloodthirst. He then requests entry into Doctor Strange's Sanctum Sanctorum. Unaware that Morbius has been possessed, Doctor Strange allows him to enter which allows other Lilin to follow. Doctor Strange convinces Morbius to fight the control of Bloodthirst. Doctor Strange then casts a spell that causes the Sanctum Sanctorum to explode. The Spirits of Vengeance then confront Lilith and Zarathos in Cypress Hills Cemetery and use the Medallion of Power to send Lilith and the Lilin back to Shadowside. The Medallion of Power disappears.
The Fallen After Lilith is exiled, it appears as if a group called The Fallen, loyal to Zarathos, has returned from exile. The Fallen are an offshoot of The Blood, the group to which Caretaker belongs. The Fallen left The Blood to follow the wizard Zarathos. The Fallen quickly beat the Midnight Sons and take Caretaker captive. The Midnight Sons regroup at The Nightclub, and Caretaker sends a message that The Fallen plan to recruit or kill surviving members of The Blood. The Midnight Sons then find James Raydar, Patriarch and Truthsayer with varying degrees of success; Patriarch joins Zarathos, Truthsayer is killed by Modred, and James Raydar joins the Midnight Sons along with Embyrre, Raydar's daughter and one of The Fallen who turns against Zarathos when she sees Morbius' nobility. Meanwhile, Victoria Montesi finds out that she has been impregnated with Chthon. Doctor Strange helps her just as he is being attacked by Salomé, one of The Fallen, who claims she is the rightful Sorceress Supreme. Doctor Strange disappears into another dimension and places Victoria Montesi in a mystical stasis. In his place appears
Strange, a mystical construct Doctor Strange based loosely on himself. Strange joins the rest of the Midnight Sons in the fight against The Fallen. The Midnight Sons then fight Patriarch, Metarchus, and Atrocity to a standstill, and the Fallen retreat. Caretaker reveals that there is one more member of The Blood they have not contacted, Foundry. The Midnight Sons track down Foundry who gives them a sword called Justiciar. She claims it must be tempered in her own blood and sacrifices herself. Blade then uses Justiciar to kill Patriarch, Metarchus, and Atrocity with the help of the other Midnight Sons. They believe the destruction of The Fallen will weaken Zarathos. They attack Zarathos directly. Embyrre and James Raydar also attack and are killed. Ghost Rider, whose spirit was absorbed by Zarathos, now apparently attacks him from within and Blade stabs Zarathos with Justiciar. Zarathos, with the sword through his chest, turns to stone. Johnny Blaze, Vengeance, Morbius, Blade, Hannibal King, Strange, and Caretaker then go through a ceremony in which they are branded with the symbol of the flaming dagger. Caretaker says they have become the successors to the original 'Order of the Midnight Sons'. This brand is placed on the arms of all the members of the new team aside from
Frank Drake, a member of the Nightstalkers and a human descendant of
Dracula and the Ghost Rider who had apparently been destroyed. Drake was disallowed from taking the brand due to his relative normalcy compared to the other members who were supernaturally afflicted and destined to be outsiders. He was allowed, however, to be an associate member.
Marvel Zombies A new Midnight Sons team is sanctioned by
A.R.M.O.R., a government agency that monitors and polices alternate realities from
Earth-616. The team is chosen by Morbius, who enlists
Daimon Hellstrom,
Jennifer Kale, and
Werewolf by Night to contain the zombie virus outbreak from further spreading into the 616 universe. The team makes a brief appearance at the end of
Marvel Zombies 3 and fully appears in
Marvel Zombies 4.
Man-Thing and
the Hood join the team later in the series.
Damnation During the
Damnation storyline, Wong and the ghost of Doctor Strange's dog Bats assemble Blade, Doctor Voodoo, Elsa Bloodstone, Ghost Rider, Moon Knight,
Iron Fist,
Scarlet Spider and
Man-Thing to form the third incarnation of the Midnight Sons so that they can help Strange fight Mephisto's forces in Las Vegas.
Midnight Suns Some time later, a new version of the team is brought together when
Strange Academy student Zoe Laveau projects a vision to supernatural characters across the Marvel Universe. Featuring
Blade,
Kushala,
Magik,
Wolverine, and
Nico Minoru, the series also includes appearances by characters such as
Agatha Harkness,
Clea Strange, and
Doctor Doom.
Midnight Sons: Blood Hunt The original Midnight Sons reunite to fight a large scale vampire invasion during the
Blood Hunt event with the vampire invasion being led by Blade. They end up figuring out that Blade is possessed by
Varnae. ==Crossovers==