Rak

Origin

Rak was an individual that died and brought back to life by Anton Hellgate to serve as one of his operatives. Hellgate gave Rak augmented powers, superhuman strength and durability. Ghost Rider was sacrificed for humanity against dark forces during the Siege of Darkness and his remains were located somewhere in Cypress Hills Cemetery. A grave robber broke into a mausoleum looking for human skulls to sell when he noticed a purple bag inside. Rak appeared and beheaded the man with one swift blow. Rak was noticed by Vengeance when he left the cemetery with a large bag. Vengeance gave chase and encountered Rak inside a dark alley. Rak wanted Vengeance’s skull because he believed it was the one. Vengeance hit Rak with a hellfire blast and discovered that the bag was filled with numerous skulls. Rak resurfaced with an energy sword  but Vengeance blocked the attack and stabbed Rak with one of his shoulder spikes. Vengeance kept stabbing Rak until he was laid out with several spikes in his chest. The Caretaker appeared and told Vengeance that none of those skulls belonged to Ghost Rider. Rak fled the scene during their conversation.

Creation

Rak was created by Howard Mackie and Ron Garney in 1994 and first appeared in Ghost Rider # 48.

Mayor Story Arcs

One of Hellgate’s minions known as Dread was being held in a jail cell after he was apprehended by Vengeance for killing several cops for snooping into Hellgate’s business. Dread used his psychic abilities to contact Rak and the powerhouse jumped off a nearby rooftop to free his friend. Peter Parker of the Daily Bugle was present to cover the story of the cop killer when his spider-sense went off. Spider-Man would join forces with Vengeance during his battle with Dread and Rak. Dread stabbed Vengeance with his energy sword and it exploded, allowing Rak and Dread to escape. Vengeance and Spider-Man found Dread and Rak inside a warehouse connected to Hellgate’s machines to recover from their injuries. A fight ensued when Hellgate appeared expressing his interest in Ghost Rider and his power emanations. Hellgate killed his operatives for their failures and disappeared. 

Powers & Abilities

Rak was given augmented strength and durability by Anton Hellgate. Rak possesses razor sharp claws and sometimes wields an energy sword.