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David Cain (comics)
Encyclopedia
David Cain is a fictional character
in the }. He first appeared in Batman
#567 (July 1999), and was created by Kelley Puckett
and Damion Scott
.
s, whose victims have included some of the most famous and powerful people on the planet. He trained the young Bruce Wayne with the skills that he would use as Batman, although Bruce has never used such techniques. Regarding his training, Batman explained, "Knowing how to kill doesn't mean you must kill."
Cain desired a perfect partner with whom to carry out his assassination plans. Attempts to train young children resulted in failure, so he decided to conceive one himself. He found the perfect mother in a martial artist named Sandra Wu-San. He watched her and her sister duel at a tournament and concluded that it was her sister Carolyn that was holding Sandra back from her full potential. He murdered Carolyn and ambushed Sandra with the help of Ra's al Ghul
and his League of Assassins. In exchange for sparing her life, Sandra agreed to bear David's child and leave the child in his care for him to train.
The child, Cassandra
, would be Cain's "One Who Is All," whose native tongue was one-on-one combat and ability to read people's intentions simply by their body language. The latter was a special gift that only the Wu-San sisters and Cassandra knew. After bearing his child, Sandra set out to become Lady Shiva
. His alias is Texas Dave.
Cain was first introduced into the Batman universe in the No Man's Land (1999) comic book arc. Two-Face
hires him to assassinate James Gordon
. Cassandra spots him and saves Gordon's life. After she has burned Two-Face's money to void the contract and refuses to come back to him, Cain leaves Gotham. He later broadcasts a video into the Batcave
that reveals what Cassandra had done years ago, but Batman continues to trust her.
hires Cain to frame Bruce Wayne
for the murder of Vesper Fairchild. Cain's ulterior motive is to see if Batman was worthy enough of raising Cassandra. After the two engage in a fight near the end of the story arc, Cain believes that Batman is indeed worthy and turns himself in to clear Wayne's name.
Luthor hires Deadshot
to kill Cain while he is in jail due to a fear of him implicating Luthor in Fairchild's murder. Cain has a death wish and almost allows himself to be killed before being reminded of Cassandra. He then fights back and nearly shoots Deadshot repeatedly, intentionally leaving him alive to prove a point. Cassandra visits Cain while in jail and attacks him, threatening to kill him if he ever commits another murder. Cain was proud of this and told Cassandra the date of her birthday
and said that "My little girl... all grown up." Later, he escaped from prison undetected to give Cassandra a birthday present before returning.
.
Following the One Year Later
continuity jump, Robin captures Cain and brings him to the League of Assassins
as ransom to save Cassandra, only to find that that Cassandra is the leader. Cassandra explains that she chose to join the League because she found that Cain had trained other children in addition to her. Her actions were later explained to be the result of Deathstroke
injecting her with a mind-altering serum. After her speech, Cassandra handed Robin a gun to kill David, offering him a place in her League. When he refused, she shot her father herself. Cain's tells Robin that there were other girls in addition to Cassandra and Annalea before apparently dieing. Afterwards, Robin and Cassandra fight. The battle ends when an explosion causes a fire to break out. By the time Robin returns to where he had left Cain's body, it is gone and the assassins' necks are broken.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
in the }. He first appeared in Batman
Batman
Batman is a fictional character created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger. A comic book superhero, Batman first appeared in Detective Comics #27 , and since then has appeared primarily in publications by DC Comics...
#567 (July 1999), and was created by Kelley Puckett
Kelley Puckett
Kelley Puckett is a comic book writer. He is the creator of the character Cassandra Cain, the Batgirl who succeeded Barbara Gordon and who was succeeded herself by Stephanie Brown, as well as the second Green Arrow, Connor Hawke.-References:...
and Damion Scott
Damion Scott
Damion Scott is an American comic book artist and writer.-Career:Scott is a graduate of The Kubert School. His drawing style is influenced by the graffiti art and the Hip hop culture...
.
The assassin
David Cain is one of the world's premier assassinAssassination
To carry out an assassination is "to murder by a sudden and/or secret attack, often for political reasons." Alternatively, assassination may be defined as "the act of deliberately killing someone, especially a public figure, usually for hire or for political reasons."An assassination may be...
s, whose victims have included some of the most famous and powerful people on the planet. He trained the young Bruce Wayne with the skills that he would use as Batman, although Bruce has never used such techniques. Regarding his training, Batman explained, "Knowing how to kill doesn't mean you must kill."
Cain desired a perfect partner with whom to carry out his assassination plans. Attempts to train young children resulted in failure, so he decided to conceive one himself. He found the perfect mother in a martial artist named Sandra Wu-San. He watched her and her sister duel at a tournament and concluded that it was her sister Carolyn that was holding Sandra back from her full potential. He murdered Carolyn and ambushed Sandra with the help of Ra's al Ghul
Ra's al Ghul
Ra's al Ghul is a DC Comics supervillain and is one of Batman's greatest enemies. His name in Arabic has been translated in the comics as "The Demon's Head" and references the name of the star Algol. Created by writer Dennis O'Neil and artist Neal Adams, he was introduced in Batman #232's...
and his League of Assassins. In exchange for sparing her life, Sandra agreed to bear David's child and leave the child in his care for him to train.
The child, Cassandra
Cassandra Cain
Cassandra Cain is a fictional character in the , one of several who has served as Batgirl, an important character in the Batman comic book franchise. Cassandra's backstory presents her as the daughter of assassins David Cain and Lady Shiva, she was deprived of speech and human contact during her...
, would be Cain's "One Who Is All," whose native tongue was one-on-one combat and ability to read people's intentions simply by their body language. The latter was a special gift that only the Wu-San sisters and Cassandra knew. After bearing his child, Sandra set out to become Lady Shiva
Lady Shiva
Lady Shiva is a fictional comic book character co-created by Dennis O'Neil and Ric Estrada, and published by DC Comics. She first appeared in Richard Dragon, Kung Fu Fighter as an antagonist of Richard Dragon...
. His alias is Texas Dave.
The father
Cain trained Cassandra in every imaginable form of violence, from hand-to-hand combat to weapons and explosives. Cain never taught her to read or write; her only language was her ability to read people and predict what her opponents were going to do. When she was 8 years old, Cain took her to kill a businessman. After she did, she "read" him as he died, she saw death as the man saw it. "Terror and then... nothing". It was this reading that made her decide that murder was wrong and she ran away from Cain.Cain was first introduced into the Batman universe in the No Man's Land (1999) comic book arc. Two-Face
Two-Face
Two-Face is a fictional comic book supervillain who appears in comic books published by DC Comics. and is an enemy of Batman. The character first appeared in Detective Comics #66 , and was created by Bob Kane and Bill Finger....
hires him to assassinate James Gordon
James Gordon (comics)
James Worthington Gordon, Sr. is a fictional character, an ally of Batman that appears in comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appeared in Detective Comics #27 , and was created by Bill Finger and Bob Kane...
. Cassandra spots him and saves Gordon's life. After she has burned Two-Face's money to void the contract and refuses to come back to him, Cain leaves Gotham. He later broadcasts a video into the Batcave
Batcave
The Batcave is the secret headquarters of fictional DC Comics superhero Batman, the alternate identity of playboy Bruce Wayne, consisting of a series of subterranean caves beneath his residence, Wayne Manor.-Publication history:...
that reveals what Cassandra had done years ago, but Batman continues to trust her.
Framing Bruce Wayne
Lex LuthorLex Luthor
Lex Luthor is a fictional character, a supervillain who appears in comic books published by DC Comics, and the archenemy of Superman, although given his high status as a supervillain, he has also come into conflict with Batman and other superheroes in the DC Universe. Created by Jerry Siegel and...
hires Cain to frame Bruce Wayne
Batman
Batman is a fictional character created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger. A comic book superhero, Batman first appeared in Detective Comics #27 , and since then has appeared primarily in publications by DC Comics...
for the murder of Vesper Fairchild. Cain's ulterior motive is to see if Batman was worthy enough of raising Cassandra. After the two engage in a fight near the end of the story arc, Cain believes that Batman is indeed worthy and turns himself in to clear Wayne's name.
Luthor hires Deadshot
Deadshot
Deadshot is a fictional character, a supervillain/assassin in the DC Universe and an enemy of Batman. He first appears in Batman #59 and was created by Bob Kane, David Vern Reed and Lew Schwartz....
to kill Cain while he is in jail due to a fear of him implicating Luthor in Fairchild's murder. Cain has a death wish and almost allows himself to be killed before being reminded of Cassandra. He then fights back and nearly shoots Deadshot repeatedly, intentionally leaving him alive to prove a point. Cassandra visits Cain while in jail and attacks him, threatening to kill him if he ever commits another murder. Cain was proud of this and told Cassandra the date of her birthday
Birthday
A birthday is a day or anniversary where a person celebrates his or her date of birth. Birthdays are celebrated in numerous cultures, often with a gift, party or rite of passage. Although the major religions celebrate the birth of their founders , Christmas – which is celebrated widely by...
and said that "My little girl... all grown up." Later, he escaped from prison undetected to give Cassandra a birthday present before returning.
Truth and consequences
Cassandra recently became curious as to the identity of her birth mother, believing it to be Lady Shiva. When she visited Cain in prison, he refused to tell her. Cassandra eventually confirmed her suspicions when she met Lady Shiva herself. As a result, Cassandra also quit being the super heroine BatgirlBatgirl
Batgirl is the name of several fictional characters appearing in comic books published by DC Comics, frequently depicted as female counterparts to the superhero Batman...
.
One Year Later
One Year Later
"One Year Later" was a 2006 storyline event running through the DC Universe. As the title suggests, it involves a narrative jump exactly one year into the future of the DC Comics Universe following the events of the Infinite Crisis event, to explore major changes within the continuities of the many...
continuity jump, Robin captures Cain and brings him to the League of Assassins
League of Assassins
The League of Assassins is a group of fictional comic book villains, an organization of killers formerly led by Ra's al Ghul, an enemy of Batman in the DC Comics Universe.-Doctor Ebeneezer Darrk:...
as ransom to save Cassandra, only to find that that Cassandra is the leader. Cassandra explains that she chose to join the League because she found that Cain had trained other children in addition to her. Her actions were later explained to be the result of Deathstroke
Deathstroke
Deathstroke the Terminator , originally simply the Terminator, and known by the Teen Titans as Slade, is a fictional character, a supervillain and sometimes antihero in the DC Comics Universe. He is a mercenary and assassin who first appeared in The New Teen Titans #2...
injecting her with a mind-altering serum. After her speech, Cassandra handed Robin a gun to kill David, offering him a place in her League. When he refused, she shot her father herself. Cain's tells Robin that there were other girls in addition to Cassandra and Annalea before apparently dieing. Afterwards, Robin and Cassandra fight. The battle ends when an explosion causes a fire to break out. By the time Robin returns to where he had left Cain's body, it is gone and the assassins' necks are broken.