Black Apostles

The twelve former members of the Monks of Dakoth-Kuru were subjected to the Black Abbott's mental abilities and turned out upon the world, posing as the Black Abbott, so that he may maintain his anonymity. One such disciple even hired Taskmaster to recruit a group of street gangs from various neighborhoods to be trained at one of his academies. This led to a confrontation with several heroes such as Spider-Man, Captain America's former partner Nomad, the Human Torch, and the god of thunder Thor. During the confrontation with Nomad, one of the disciples was about to turn a groggy Spider-Man into ash, but he suffered that fate instead as his own hand was turned to ash when Nomad threw Taskmaster's shield between the two, saving Spider-Man's life.