Following his adventure with the Thing (in Marvel Two-In-One #8) the Ghost Rider comes across an old man being chased by the ghost of a World War I fighter pilot. Just barely escaping being gunned down due to the rising dawn sending the spirit away, Johnny learns that the old man is Hermann von Reitberger. Hermann tells Johnny that he's been stalked the past 80 years by the ghost of the World War I hero the Phantom Eagle, because he had killed the hero in a fair dog fight near the end of the war. Accepting his fate now that he is an old man, Hermann tells Johnny all he wants to do is see his grandson Joel one last time before meeting his death.

Taking him to see Joel, Johnny learns that Joel is a World War I buff who restores old planes and is working on a book about fighter pilots. Just as Joel begins talking about inconsistencies with his grandfather's story, the Phantom Eagle returns and attacks. When Johnny changes into the Ghost Rider once more, he tries to stop the Phantom Eagle from killing von Reitberger. The Eagle then tells Blaze the true story: That while trying to smuggle his parents out of Germany, the Eagle was cowardly killed by von Reitberger who happened to be at the right place at the right time.

Believing that it's still not the Eagle's place to murder von Reitberger, he tries to stop him, however the Eagle has become immaterial and the Ghost Rider begins to fall to his imminent death. Becoming solid again to save Ghost Rider, the Phantom Eagle becomes a target of von Reitberger who has taken flight in one of his grandson's planes. During the dog fight, von Reitberger ends up crashing his plane into the hanger giving the Eagle the revenge he so craved. After landing Johnny safely to the ground the Eagle takes flight once more to meet his eternal rest.

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