Cain & Abel

Cain Weiss is a hero and a member of The Fallen Hunters. Possessed by the demon Abel, he wanders the United States (and Europe) hunting down demons and other monsters, often with Amelia von Graff and the other members of The Fallen Hunters.

Biography
Cain Weiss was born in Henrietta, Indiana to very religious parents. In fact, the whole town was extremely religious, going to church as often as the pastor, Reverend Issac Autumn, held mass. His family pushed him to church, Sunday school, and other church services throughout his younger years. Cain grew up to resent this, oftentimes wandering the woods after school to get away from his parents and from going to church.

While in high school, he meets a girl named Rosemary McBride. Rose (as she prefers to be called) and Cain end up becoming fast friends, and eventually fall in love with each other. She lives one town over, so the two meet in an abandoned cabin located in the middle of the woods, reading books and just relaxing and talking.

Senior year, during one of their meetings, Rose brings a book she found in an old bookstore in Indianapolis. The book, Buch der Dämonen, is written in multiple languages, primarily Latin and German. Cain and Rose both think that it's just a book of myths, and Cain reads it, laughing at the descriptions of the multiple demons. This, however, unbeknownst to the two, summons a lot of minor demons (and a couple major ones) from the underworld. One of the minor demons, Abel, inadvertently possesses Cain. The book is then seemingly destroyed in a strange green fire.

At the same time, Reverend Autumn is praying to the Lord. Another demon, Judas, talks to him. Rev. Autumn, believing this to be the voice of God, begins to converse with this demon, and is eventually granted "divine" powers. Demonstrating these powers to the town, and explaining that he has spoken with God and has been chosen as a champion of the Lord, Rev. Autumn convinces the townspeople to follow him, to spread His word to the unbelievers, and to strike down those to refuse to convert. And he knew just who to start with.

After school one day, Cain went to the cabin, and knew something was off. Rose wasn't waiting outside like she normally did, and the door was slightly open. Pushing open the door, he saw Rose dead, two followers of Rev. Autumn standing inside waiting for him. The resulting shock of finding his girlfriend murdered allows Abel take control of Cain's mind, possessing him and brutally killing his assailants. There is a mental struggle, which results in Cain being victorious.

Seeing the scene laid before him, he runs away in fear and sadness. He sneaks back home to pack some clothes and hops the next train that passes by. While crying in one of the train cars, Abel speaks to him. He explains what has happened, why it happened, and expresses displeasure at the current predicament. Abel wants to go back to his plane of existence, just as Cain wants to be free of the demon, so they agree to help each other find a way to reverse the possession.

Possession
Abel, while only being a minor demon, is still capable of greater strength than a common person. Abel can lend some of his power to Cain, keeping Cain in control of his mind and body while enhancing his strength. However, the more power Abel lends, the more Cain's mind is damaged by the foreign invader.

Some of the powers Abel can grant are:
 * Demonic Blast - Cain shoots a blast of Infernal energy out of his hand, burning anyone hit with demonic fire.
 * Demonic Fist - Cain's hand grows wicked spikes, making being punched by him hurt a LOT more.
 * Demon Armor - Hardened scales grow on Cain's body, allowing him to resist minor sources of damage, like punches or small arms fire.
 * Demonic Fire - Cain breathes out a blast of fire from his mouth over a wide area, engulfing anyone unfortunate to be standing there.
 * Demonic Swiftness - Abel grants Cain greater speed, allowing him to run (and react) much quicker than normal.
 * Demonic Shout - Cain shouts out a phrase in the language of demons, causing those to hear it to cower in fear.
 * Demonic Sear - By touching an enemy, Cain can inflict a painful burn.
 * Demonic Restoration - Abel increases the healing factor of Cain's body, making wounds heal quicker.

Psychic Resonance
Cain, over the years, has learned how to shield his mind from the more major effects of Abel's possession. He can generally protect himself from the insanity caused by a demon inhabiting his mind. He quickly discovered that the psychic trauma that is effected on him can also be projected to hurt the minds of others, and now uses this to take down villains.

Buch der Dämonen
The Book of Demons, this is the book that caused the entire mess. Just by possessing the book, Abel's demonic abilities are enhanced. Cain can also banish demons using an incantation. Some passages, however, are written in a language even Abel doesn't understand, hiding some deeper mysteries of what the book can do.

Comics & Publication
Cain and Abel are a fairly major staple, having their own major publication and a lot of spin-offs and one-shots. He mostly clashes with more of the mystical side of things, banishing demons and the undead, as well as being in various confrontations with Reverend Autumn. He mostly works solo, but as a member of the Fallen Hunters appears in their stories as a side character.

The stories are definitely a product of the modern era, with a lot of his stories being darker in tone. Some of the comics deal with mental illness, cults and religion. There was some major backlash in the portrayal of religion in the stories, but in recent times it's been not as bad.

Cain and Abel's comics are not as popular as some more major staples, such as Dregan, but he has a cult (heh) following and his comics are popular enough to allow for the continued publication.

Comics

 * Demonology - Cain and Abel's primary series. They focus on Cain and Abel dealing with a demon or monster of some kind, and the arcs never last more than a few issues. They're less heavy with serious ideas, and are peppered with dark humor.
 * Red Like a Rose - Mini-Series. Cain and Abel's origin story. Discusses Rose and her murder, Abel's possession of Cain, and the rise of Reverend Autumn.
 * The Fallen - A secondary series, focusing on the exploits of The Fallen Hunters as a team.
 * Atlas Obscura - A alternate universe comic where The Fallen Hunters are the crew of the Lyoness, captained by Amelia von Graff. A much lighter comic compared to the main series.

Stories

 * Darkwood - A crossover story between Nightmist and Cain + Abel, with an appearance by Amelia von Graff. They find the Buch der Dämonen in Germany, allowing Abel more power.
 * Shepard - A shorter story about Cain and Abel trying to take on Rev. Autumn and his cult on their own. This goes as expected.
 * Moonstruck - Discusses the formation of The Fallen Hunters, and their fight against Wolfgang von Graff.
 * Witch Hunt - The Fallen Hunters fight Reverend Autumn and his cult. Goes better than the first time.
 * Of Little Faith - A story related to Cain being somewhat "different" than normal humans (and heroes) and him struggling with that.
 * The Treasure of Paolo Navarro - A story in the Atlas Obscura universe, the crew hunt for an ancient treasure.

Trivia & Extra Info

 * Cain used to have brown hair and blue-grey eyes before he was possessed by Abel.
 * Cain suffers from depression, and a lot of his comics touch on this.
 * Cain and Nightmist had a little bit of a relationship going on after Darkwood.