WARNING: The following contains spoilers for X-Men: Curse of the Man-Thing #1, by Steve Orlando, Andrea Broccardo, Guru-eFX and VC's Clayton Cowles, on sale now.
With sinister forces attempting to take control of the vast powers and abilities of Man-Thing, much of the Marvel Universe has been roped into helping the elemental superhero regain control of his faculties as his hijacked physical form unleashes chaos worldwide. And as the X-Men are drawn into the conflict, the mission to restore scientist Ted Sallis' mastery over Man-Thing has the unintended side effect of playing right into Mephisto's hands.
Using telepathic links to various heroes, Ted has confessed much of his past prior to transforming into Man-Thing, often revealing the morally questionable lengths he had gone in order to conduct his experiments to replicate the Super-Soldier serum that created Captain America. In addition to working with the longtime Spider-Man antagonist Curt Connors on the experiment, Ted admits to Magik that he also made a deal with the devil Belasco to ensure his experiments would yield effective results. Ted's wish came true, but with the cruel price of transforming him into a monster. And as Magik helps Ted reassert control of his monstrous form, the superhero team-up then turns its focus to Ted's unfinished business with Belasco.
Using a scrying spell, Magik summons Belasco from his hellish domain to the bayou where he first approached Ted with his devilish deal. Indignant that he's been involuntarily removed from his kingdom, Belasco is shocked to find that he is now confronting Ted and Man-Thing, with the two individuals separated and Ted's humanity apparently restored. And after spending years trapped inside Man-Thing's monstrous form and having his personal life completely ruined by the dark side of his deal with Belasco, Ted is eager to finally lay his vengeance upon the stranded devil on Earth, with both Man-Thing and Magik's aid.
Intent on obtaining revenge on Belasco, Magik and Man-Thing's team-up fails to take into account the recent power struggles taking place in Hell. During the 2018 crossover event Damnation, Mephisto was stripped of his title as Lord of Hell and imprisoned in Las Vegas. While Johnny Blaze took the fiery throne in his place, his superhero responsibilities and sensibilities as Ghost Rider led to a demonic civil war, with various devils like Lilith and Belasco each battling to take over Hell for themselves. In the chaos of the crossover King in Black, Ghost Rider decided Mephisto was needed back in control of Hell to quell the demons escaping to Earth, restoring him to the throne.
While it's unclear when exactly Man-Thing's team-up with Magik takes place in relation to the events of King in Black, the adventure did evidently lead to Belasco being decisively taken off the board for the foreseeable future. With Belasco neutralized, Mephisto has just lost a serious challenger to his authority all without lifting a single finger himself. The heroes have dealt with one devil but an even more sinister one lies in waiting in the fires of Hell, now even more securely in power than he was before as one of the Marvel Universe's biggest threats is sure to make the heroes' lives Hell once again.
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