History
Dunya Mishkin is a vampire and agent of the Blood Red Moon. Her son is vampire-hunter Dmitri Mishkin, assistant to the legendary Andrew Bennett.
Origins
During her early life, Dunya lived in Russia with her son Dmitri and her abusive alocholic husband Ivan Mishkin. One night they let a visitor in from the cold who turned out to be Mary, Queen of Blood.
Mary killed Ivan and turned Dunya into a vampire, taking her to become an agent of the Blood Red Moon. Dmitri was abandoned and taken in by Mary's nemesis Andrew Bennett to become a vampire hunter.[1]
I...Vampire!
Dmitri next sees Dunya when she is working for the American Freedom Party, a racist political movement in upstate New York. Bennett discovers that she is manipulating the cause, but Dmitri stops him from killing her.[2] The next time they see her she is working under Reverend Warnock for a grassroots religious movement in politics called the American Crusade. Bennett and Deborah Dancer stake Warnock while Dmitri leaves them to hunt down his mother.[3]
Dmitri slays his mother.
Bennett and Dancer follow her to Moscow where she has kidnapped Dmitri. Their investigations take them to a vampire KGB agent named Yuri Rashnikov who's developed a formula sought after by the Blood Red Moon. Dunya's forces storm his installation while Bennett and Dancer distract them. They're chased down with the formula, and it's revealed that she turned Dmitri into a reluctant vampire as well.[4] Dunya corners the team of vampire-hunters into Dmitri's childhood home, where they're pinned down by sunlight. Her remaining forces ambush them, and all vampires are slain in the attack except Dunya. Deborah attempts to shoot her, but Dmitri dives in the way to protect his mother. He asks her if she loves him now, but she scorns him again and he stakes her in the back. His dying words are the realization that she wasn't really his mother anymore.[5]
Powers and Abilities
Powers
- Vampirism: In addition to the various mental and physical benefits that vampires are heir to, they also possess the ability to turn others into vampires as well. Each new vampire is traditionally subservient to the one who "turned" them, but some strong-willed vampires have been known to rebel against their masters.
- Enhanced Senses: A vampire's senses are enhanced far beyond those of a normal human being.
- Immortality: So long as vampires continue to consume blood, they will not age beyond the physical state they were in when they first became a vampire.
- Invulnerability: Vampires are invulnerable to most forms of injury (certain exceptions apply). Bullets, blades and blunt objects do little to no damage to a vampire's body.
- Regeneration: In addition to being virtually indestructible, whatever damage a vampire does in fact suffer can be healed through the consumption of human blood.
- Superhuman Strength: A vampire's strength level is several times that of a normal human being and they are considered superhuman.
- Superhuman Speed: A vampire's speed level is several times that of a normal human being and they are considered superhuman.
- Superhuman Stamina: So long as they continue to consume human blood, a vampire can function tirelessly without rest or relaxation. However, a vampire's stamina wanes the closer it is to sunrise.
- Psychokinesis: Most vampires possess some form of psychokinesis. Some are clairvoyant, others can communicate telepathically, some possess mind control. Particularly powerful vampires can control the minds of several people at once.
- Transformation: Vampires often possess the ability to transform into a variety of creatures or effects such as bats, wolves, rats or even mist. While their physical attributes may fluctuate during such states, a vampire's mental acuity is the same as that when they are in their human shape. A vampire who transforms into an animal may also benefit from that particular animal's attributes including razor-sharp claws, fangs or the ability to fly. Vampires also often demonstrate the ability to alter their appearance at will.
Notes
- Although this character was originally introduced during DC's Earth-One era of publication, their existence following the events of the 1985–86 limited series Crisis on Infinite Earths remains intact. However, some elements of the character's Pre-Crisis history may have been altered or removed for Post-Crisis New Earth continuity, and should be considered apocryphal.
Related
- 5 Appearances of Dunya Mishkin (New Earth)
- 4 Images featuring Dunya Mishkin (New Earth)
- Quotations by or about Dunya Mishkin (New Earth)
- Character Gallery: Dunya Mishkin (New Earth)
Footnotes