| Hollow | |
|---|---|
Penance, Generation X #5 Art by Chris Bachalo |
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| Publication information | |
| Publisher | Marvel Comics |
| First appearance | Generation X #1 (November, 1994) |
| Created by | Scott Lobdell Chris Bachalo |
| In-story information | |
| Species | Human Mutant |
| Team affiliations | The Loners Generation X Avengers Academy |
| Notable aliases | Penance, Penny, Yvette |
| Abilities | Razor-sharp and exceptionally tough skin Has long claws for hands, feet and hair. |
Hollow (formerly called Penance) is an apparently mindless body which three members of the St Croix family, all members of the Marvel Comics superhero team Generation X, had been trapped in at some time. The body possesses red diamond-like skin and rarely speaks.
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Monet St. Croix is the sister of Marius, Claudette, and Nicole St. Croix. When her brother Marius, who would later become the mutant Emplate, first manifests his powers, the conceited Monet often verbally abused him. An enraged Emplate transforms her body into a hardened, spiked, red state and left her mute. He then tells her to "consider this your penance". Claudette and Nicole, realizing how dangerous their brother is becoming, banish him to his own pocket dimension, but he manages to bring Monet with him. Nicole and Claudette, knowing Monet was their parents' favorite, decide to merge into one body with the appearance of Monet (see Monet-twins).
Shortly after the formation of the mutant teen team Generation X, the red-skinned Monet is dropped onto the front lawn of the Massachusetts Academy by Gateway, who speaks the single word: "Penance[1]," which is taken by witnesses to be her name. She is brought inside by headmaster Banshee, who discovers her powers as he cuts his hands by trying to pick her up[2] As Penance cannot speak, understand English (apparently), and with an immunity to telepathy, Banshee places her in the infirmary as Banshee and Emma Frost attempt to discover her identity. Teen member M, her relation to Penance unknown, tells the adults that Penance was perhaps a prisoner of Emplate[2], whom the group had encountered previously and knew only as a parasitic mutant who fed upon other mutants.
As the team leaves, Penance awakens with one thought on her mind: survival. Perceiving the infirmary as a cell, she escapes, tearing the room apart in the process. Hearing the alarms of a breach, the team rushes to the infirmary and is amazed at the damage she caused. The team splits up to find her before she can cause further damage to the Academy. Team member Chamber, feeling a kindred spirit due to his own mutilated body, leaves the group to search for her alone. Feeling that another deformed soul would seek him out, he waited for her arrival. After Penance fights her way past the rest of the team (Husk, Synch, Jubilee, and M), she approaches Chamber, who talks telepathically to her in an attempt to convince her that he knows how she feels and eventually calms the girl down into staying with the team.[3]
During her stay at the Academy, she would rarely interact with her peers, due to her animalistic nature and fright of being captured again. Fortunately, perhaps due to her time with the feral mutant Wolverine, Jubilee becomes a friend to her. Trusting her friends more, Penance begins to go on missions with the others [4]. In a subsequent mission, presumably to cover up their relation, Emplate refers to her as "Yvette" and the others grow somewhat wary of Penance.[5]
Finally, M reveals that she is a combination of two sisters, and tells the others the truth about Penance, and that they feel horrible about impersonating their sister[6]. To "make things right", the twins, now split apart, merge once more into the form of Monet and swap places with Penance, freeing the real Monet at last, with the merged twins taking over as Penance's body.[7]
Monet, free at last, continues to operate under the twins' codename of M, while the twins retain the identity of Penance. Both remain a part of the Generation X team, while still trying to cure the still mute Penance. Later, an explosion frees the twins from the Penance body, but the body would continue to function as though a mind is still inside it. [8]
When the twins leave for their home, they take the now Hollow Penance body with them, along with the mutants Artie Maddicks and Leech.[9]
Penance was renamed since the name was being used by Robbie Baldwin. The Loners writer C. B. Cebulski has revealed that the Hollow/Penance body has a new host: "Is there someone inhabiting it at this point. Yes. Who is it? Wait and see!"[10]
After Ricochet breaks into a building holding women being used to harvest Mutant Growth Hormone. There he meets an assassin named Delilah. During the fight, one of Ricochets discs break open a chamber and Penance emerges.[11] At first confused as to where she is, Penance tries to convince Ricochet that she isn't a threat, though he is forced to avoid her claws. Lightspeed (following Ricochet out of concern) lands between the two and uses her Kymellian powers to mesmerize Penance, but when she places her hand on Penances shoulder, she stabs Lightspeed through her shoulders. Later, Penance encounters the rest of the group at the hospital where Julie is recovering. It is then she senses a kindred spirit in Phil Urich. She is followed by the ones intent on imprisoning her, including a mysterious woman named Fuyumi Fujikawa who calls her "Hollow". Mickey Musashi's makes a deal with the woman that allows Hollow to remain with the group, and which allows her to stay at Phil's residence.[12]
While Phil is in the kitchen washing dishes. She is woken up by the sound of him smashing plates when he hallucinates an image of himself as the Green Goblin, kissing her, and tries to comfort him.[13] After an attack by Nekra, Penance witness Phil become irrational when he sees Chris and Mickey share a celebratory kiss after attack. Later, she follows Phil to Mickey's apartment.[14] After Phil steals the Darkhawk amulet, Hollow joins the other Loners in the battle between Phil, who is wearing the Darkhawk armor and Chris, who managed to summon his second Darkhawk armor. After the fight, she joins the defeated Phil who leaves the group.[15]
It is still unknown who is inside the armor.
Monet St. Croix is mentioned when her brother Emplate attacks Utopia, under her former codename.
Penance/Hollow (along with most of the members from the Loners) was seen among the new students attending the Avengers Academy.[16]
The powers of the different hosts/prisoners of the Penance form vary, but the hollow Penance form's powers are red diamond-hard skin and extended super-long razor-sharp claws on their fingers, toes, and hair follicles. Because of the density of the skin, it is quite durable, as well as resistant to psychic intrusion.