Fictional Character Biography
At the age of 10, the child who would grow up to become The Shroud saw his parents gunned down right before his eyes. He decided to dedicate his life to fighting crime. Upon graduation from college, he joined the mysterious temple called "Cult of Kali", where he studied various styles of martial arts. After seven years of intense training, he graduated from that temple. During the celebration ceremony, he was branded with the "Kiss of Kali," a red-hot iron. He had the image of the goddess Kali imprinted in livid scar tissue on his face from nose to hairline and from cheek to cheek. Following a period of intense pain and hospitalization, he realized that his eyesight had been replaced by a mystic extrasensory perception. Traveling back to the United States, he adopted the masked identity of the Shroud.
His first appearance as a hero was in Latveria, where he encountered the Human Torch. He invaded Latveria, intending to kill Doctor Doom for his crimes against humanity. The Shroud recounted his origin to Namor the Sub-Mariner, and the two secretly entered Latveria disguised as members of the Ringmaster's Circus of Crime. The Shroud joined Prince Rudolfo's revolution against Doctor Doom, and came close to his revenge. However, the Shroud shifted gears in order help Doom and Captain America oppose someone else with a longer track record of crimes against the humanity: the Red Skull. In outer space, The Shroud was shot by a ray built by the Red Skull while Doom battled the Skull on the moon. The Shroud was rescued by Captain America, while the Red Skull was left defeated on the moon (he was later rescued by Hitler himself, as the Hate Monger). Captain America brought Shroud back to Earth, but because of his time in space, Shroud became insane and it took him quite a while to recover. After this recovery, Shroud discovered that he was able to tap into the Darkforce dimension.
The Shroud later recruits Spider-Woman to infiltrate a S.H.I.E.L.D. facility so that they can access the files. Alongside Spider-Woman, the Shroud battled the Cult of Kali. The Shroud then took on Cat and Mouse as his aides. He then teamed with Spider-Man against Dansen Macabre. The Shroud aided the Avengers and Doctor Strange against Morgan le Fay. He helped restore the former Spider-Woman's astral self to her body. He later refused Hawkeye's offer to join the West Coast Avengers. The Shroud assisted a depowered Jessica Drew against some crooks. He assisted the West Coast Avengers against Graviton and the Blank.
The Shroud went undercover in Los Angeles and operating as a crime-fighter masquerading as a criminal, he built a reputation as a criminal so he could destroy their world from within. This led him to create the group known as the Night Shift. With the Night Shift, he teamed with Captain America against the Power Broker and his augmented mutates. He tested Moon Knight to take over as leader of the Night Shift. He refused Taurus's offer to join the new Zodiac. He teamed with Hawkeye against the gang leader, Speedo. Behind the scenes, Shroud made a deal with the West Coast Avengers not to interfere with his activities underground, but during a battle, Shroud went missing and the Night Shift battled the Avengers, causing a strain between the groups when the Shroud stopped the battle. When Shroud returned to action, it was revealed that he had spent some time with his family, though no actual names of that family have ever been revealed. Shroud made few appearances in the years following.
When the Superhero Registration Act was proposed by the United States during the Civil War storyline, Shroud refused to accept the proposal to give up his secret identity, and sided against heroes such as Ms. Marvel and Iron Man. He is also in a romantic relationship with Julia Carpenter, the second Spider-Woman, now known as Arachne. With Julia's help, Shroud managed to escape from Ryker's Island, injuring a number of S.H.I.E.L.D agents in the process. The two of them planned to flee to Canada with Julia's daughter Rachel, but Wonder Man and Ms. Marvel captured the Shroud and Julia the following issue. He is then broken out in order to join Captain America's anti-registration army and takes part in the final battle.
During the Shadowland storyline, Shroud is paired with Silver Sable, Misty Knight, and Paladin when Daredevil's Hand ninjas target members of the mafia.
Read more about this topic: Shroud (comics)
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