Kwannon (Earth-616)

Psylocke
Name	Unrevealed
Current Alias	Psylocke
Aliases	Codenames: Revanche Other Aliases: Butterfly Kwannon Nothing
Affiliation and Relationships
Group Affiliation	X-Men (Alaska Team) partner of Greycrow Formerly: Great Captains of Krakoa Avengers Unity Division; Marauders (Krakoa) Hellions Hand former servant of Lord Nyoirin
Relatives	Children: Himeko (daughter, deceased)
Host of	Lady in White (formerly)
Marital Status	Single
Physical Characteristics
Gender	Female
Height	5′11″ (1.8 m)
Weight	155 lbs (70.31 kg)
Eyes	Irises: Purple
Hair	Black
Origin and Living Status
Origin	Mutant
Living Status	Alive; formerly deceased
Reality	Earth-616
Place of Birth	Tokyo, Japan
Cause of Death	Died from the Legacy Virus in Betsy Braddock's body (revived in her original body after Betsy Braddock left it) Stabbed by Mister Sinister (resurrected by the Five) Died in the aftermath of battle (resurrected by the Five)
Personal Information
Identity	Secret
Citizenship	Japanese, Krakoan
Occupation	Adventurer assassin
Education	Instructed in the traditional teachings of the Hand
Base of Operations	Factory, Merle, Alaska Formerly: Hellions Staging Theater, Krakoa, Pacific Ocean; Bar Sinister, Krakoa, Pacific Ocean; Reservoir, Krakoa, Pacific Ocean; X-Mansion, Salem Center, North Salem, Westchester County, New York; Lord Nyoirin's ancestral home, Kanagawa Prefecture, Honshu, Japan; Tokyo, Japan; Unknown Hand temple in Japan
Creators and Appearances
Creators	Fabian Nicieza, Andy Kubert
First	X-Men (Vol. 2) #17 (December, 1992) (First full appearance) Fallen Angels (Vol. 2) #1 (November, 2019) (As Psylocke)
First	X-Men (Vol. 2) #17 (December, 1992) (First full appearance) Fallen Angels (Vol. 2) #1 (November, 2019) (As Psylocke)

Mercy is my name. But it is not my way.

—Psylocke[source]

The woman named Kwannon by the Hand is a ninja assassin raised from birth to be a killer. As a mutant psychic and one of Japan's top enforcers, she ultimately abandoned the Hand and became the personal operative of the crime boss Lord Nyoirin. This brought her into conflict with her lover and rival, Hand assassin Matsu'o Tsurayaba. After she nearly died in battle against Tsurayaba, the Hand, having assistance from the witch Spiral, had Kwannon's comatose body switched with that of Betsy Braddock, the X-Man Psylocke.

Confused and believing herself to be Braddock, Kwannon took the name Revanche and joined the X-Men, uneasily having Braddock as a teammate. After contracting the lethal Legacy Virus, she discovered her true nature and was mercy-killed by Tsurayaba at her request. Braddock continued to live in Kwannon's body. When Braddock was killed by Sapphire Styx, she telekinetically rebuilt her original body, while Kwannon was revived in her own. Kwannon became an ally to the X-Men once more. She has claimed the codename Psylocke.

More recently, Kwannon forged an uneasy alliance with Mister Sinister for the sake of her lost daughter, taking on a supervising role of his troubled charges, the new Hellions. This brought her immense tragedy and guilt. Next, when mutantkind struggled against the organization known as Orchis, Psylocke was recruited by Captain America to join the Avengers Unity Squad. Following the fall of Orchis, Psylocke rejoined the X-Men in their mission to protect mutant victims.

History

No Mercy

Being trained by the Hand

Molded into an assassin ninja since tender age by a traditional clan of the criminal organization known as the Hand, Kwannon was ironically baptized as such to be “the enemy of peace.” Her training was regarded as a metamorphosis, akin to an insignificant caterpillar transforming into a magnificent butterfly. As a child, she was trafficked to operate as an assassin alongside a fellow orphan, Mitsuki, both under the tutelage of the cruel Master Hayashi who deployed torture to hone his pupils. At the remote mountains of Kyoto, Master Hayashi was responsible for mentoring agents with the potential of developing special powers, justifying his choice for Kwannon, who was a mutant. Usually consumed by violence, during missions, the young Kwannon displayed no mercy at all, slaying targets and enemies swiftly and efficiently with no second thought. Despite having a torturous life, in Mitsuki, Kwannon found a dear friend to whom she could relate. Mitsuki had the ability to commune with Yokai spirits, that proved essential in an assignment aimed at collecting the soul-eating Equinox Blade for Hayashi. The wielder of the sword had been transformed into a devilish Oni. While engaging in battle against him, Kwannon's mutant powers activated and she executed the creature using telepathy to deactivate his mind. Due to her inferior performance, Mitsuki was executed by Master Hayashi, which represented a traumatic event for Kwannon.

Endowed with mutant telepathic abilities, Kwannon cultivated a notorious reputation in Japan as an efficient killer who could delve into others' thoughts, operating as a loyal and merciless member of her clan. However, as a Hand operative, Kwannon's path took a turn when she fell in love with a young man and bore a daughter, which displeased her masters. Her beloved was slain, and her newborn child was separated from her. In a twisted display of so-called mercy, the baby was marked with a butterfly-shaped tattoo behind her neck in order to make her recognizable if fate ever brought mother and daughter together again. However, Kwannon never again encountered her lost daughter, baptized Himeko.

Breaking free from her masters

A crucial moment in Kwannon's career unfolded after she was assigned the task of eliminating a traitor within her clan. As she carried out the execution, empathy overwhelmed her due to a psychic glimpse of the love her target harbored for his wife and unborn child. Touched by compassion, Kwannon rebelliously aided the family go underground rather than murdering them, defying the explicit orders she had received. Another clandestine act of mercy occurred during a mission in which Kwannon chose not to destroy a menacing artificial intelligence named Apoth. This decision led Apoth to develop an obsessive connection with Kwannon, perceiving its savior as its true creator. These manifestations of Kwannon's resilience against the psychological torment imposed upon her culminated in her turning against her masters and assassinating them. Her liberation paralleled the emergence of a butterfly from its chrysalis, but simultaneously transformed Kwannon into the weapon of destruction her dark overseers had always intended her to become.

Operating as Lord Nyoirin's prime assassin

Knowing nothing else but violence, Kwannon worked as an assassin by trade, rising to prominence as the main operative serving Japanese crime lord Nyoirin. Concurrently, she engaged in a romantic relationship with Matsu'o Tsurayaba, a high-ranking figure within the Hand. As the interests of Nyoirin and the Hand came into conflict, Kwannon found herself honor-bound to face her lover in a lethal duel. The fight ensued against the backdrop of an ocean cliff and resulted in Kwannon's precipitous fall. She sustained injuries that left her with debilitating brain damage. The prognosis for the comatose Kwannon offered no glimmer of hope for recovering, which weighed heavily on Tsurayaba.

Revanche

Trapped in a coma

Conveniently, the telepathic member of the X-Men Betsy Braddock, a.k.a. Psylocke, was found washed up on the shore of the Hand's island base in the South China Sea. Her arrival, a consequence of passing through the Siege Perilous, posited a solution to Kwannon's predicament. Determined to restore Kwannon, Tsurayaba sought the assistance of the sorceress Spiral, a begrudging servant of Mojo, who had previously shown interest in Psylocke. Tsurayaba believed that Kwannon's limited psychic powers would allow her mind to withstand contact with a high-level telepath like Psylocke, recovering her from her coma. Spiral's penchant for trickery and deception led her to transpose the minds of the two women into each other's bodies. Kwannon's perfected body became inhabited by Braddock's telepathic mind, while her fractured psyche lived on Braddock's moribund body. Tsurayaba transformed Psylocke into a loyal super-agent for the Hand and manipulated her into becoming the Mandarin's second-in-command through brainwashing. Under this influence, Psylocke crossed paths with Wolverine, which ended up with her breaking free and reuniting with the X-Men.

In Braddock's body, as Revanche

Trapped in Braddock's body, Kwannon was delivered to her employer Lord Nyorin by Spiral. The convergence of their bodies and minds caused Kwannon to believe that she was, in fact, Betsy Braddock. Following months under Nyoirin's watchful eye, Kwannon was dispatched to confront Psylocke and expose her. Upon infiltrating Xavier's School, she launched an attack on Psylocke inside the chambers of the Danger Room, prompting the intervention of the X-Men. Adopting the codename Revanche, Kwannon asserted that Psylocke was an imposter. The X-Men found themselves unable to discern the truth. Their scents were identical to Wolverine's senses, and Psylocke was unwilling to allow Professor Xavier to telepathically probe her memories and confirm the authenticity of her identity. Journeying to Japan in search of answers, the X-Men had access to Nyoirin's diary, which suggested that Kwannon had happened upon Braddock after her emergence from the Siege Perilous portal. As a result of disorientation, Psylocke's telepathy would have run unchecked and fused their minds together. Confronted by the X-Men, Nyoirin cryptically directed them to seek out Tsurayaba. However, after being found, Tsurayaba did not reveal the truth about the events that had transpired.

Asking Matsu'o to mercy kill her

Revanche returned with the X-Men, officially joining the team, much to Psylocke's discomfort. Her presence along the X-Men telepathically clouded their perception of her condition concerning Braddock and their shared identity. During a mission on an island housing victims of the deadly Legacy Virus, Revanche disclosed her own affliction with the lethal disease to the X-Men. As the infection progressed, her telepathic abilities underwent a gradual augmentation, piercing through the haze of confusion surrounding her memories. Faced with certainty about her true identity, Kwannon decided to part ways with the X-Men. However, before her departure, she removed the bionic eyes Mojo had implanted in Braddock's body years before, severing her connection with Spiral. On the brink of death, Kwannon found her way back to Japan, where she asked Tsurayaba to swiftly end her life, enabling her to die on her terms instead of being a victim. Matsu'o Tsurayaba mercy-killed Kwannon with a tantō. In her final moments, Kwannon bequeathed a fragment of her psionic energies to Tsurayaba, a gesture that allowed him to restore Psylocke's mind. Kwannon's epitaph read “love that transcended body and soul.”

Nothing

Reanimated in her original body

For years, Psylocke continued to live within Kwannon's body. At some point, she was involved in a mysterious mission in Madripoor against the Femme Fatales. During an encounter with the psychic vampire Sapphire Styx, Braddock fell victim to a soul-absorbing assault that entrapped her consciousness. Psylocke's lifeless and vacant body laid seemingly devoid of vitality. In order to escape, Braddock defeated the villain in the astral plane and ingeniously reconstructed her original body, successfully reviving herself within it. The unexpected consequence of such a resurrection was the reanimation of her prior body, now once again inhabited by the spirit of Kwannon.

Kwannon resurfaces

Restored to her rightful body, Kwannon crossed paths with the X-Men once more as mutantkind struggled to escape extinction. When confronting the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants in East Transia, the X-Men unraveled that their enemies' leader Magneto was, in fact, the clone Joseph. Kwannon interrupted the commotion by swiftly decapitating the villain with her katana. Finding difficulties to recollect her memories and fully recognize the X-Men, she introduced herself as “nothing,” as translated by Wolverine from Japanese. Kwannon asserted that her actions were driven by the fact that Joseph was being manipulated as an asset, part of a plan to eradicate mutants from the world.

Despite the X-Men's decision to confine Kwannon within their hideout, Wolverine opted to free her, seeking assistance in avenging the death of Wolfsbane. Using her telepathic abilities, Kwannon skillfully tracked Wolfsbane's killers and shared their memories with Wolverine in order to confirm the murder. Amidst a confrontation against O*N*E agents, Wolverine exacted revenge by decisively eliminating the culprits. Furthermore, she proceeded to join Wolverine in a fight against Emma Frost's new Hellfire Club. During the battle, Kwannon faced defeat at the hands of the shapeshifter Mystique, who tormented her with Braddock's visage. Her failure was followed by O*N*E gaining advantage against Wolverine.

Sinister Alliance

Approaching Mister Sinister

Embracing the name Psylocke, Kwannon became a citizen of the mutant haven of Krakoa, considering the island-nation a peaceful paradise that had no place for her. At some point, she enjoyed a brief romantic connection with Shinobi Shaw, former Black King of the Hellfire Club. On the island, her peace was disturbed as she psychically experienced the death of her long-lost daughter at the hands of Apoth. Since Krakoa was under a strict lockdown following the murder of Professor X, Psylocke sought assistance from Mister Sinister in desperation to leave and confront Apoth. To execute her mission, she enlisted aid from X-23 and Cable. Venturing to Japan, the trio discovered Apoth's nefarious use of children to disseminate the potent technological drug called Overclock. Being sanctioned by Sinister, Psylocke pledged to deliver Apoth to him to keep the adventure a secret from the Quiet Council of Krakoa. Apoth was found in Brazil, where Psylocke communed with it to shockingly learn that she had been responsible for its conception. Sinister tampered with Overclock, enabling Psylocke to interact with Apoth on a cyberspace. Psylocke executed the malevolent intelligence and, true to her word, presented its remains to Mister Sinister.

Monitoring the Hellions of Krakoa

Psylocke was then assigned to monitor Mister Sinister's unconventional band of Hellions, which comprised mutants deemed too violent or troubled for mainstream Krakoan society. Their inaugural mission was to dismantle Mister Sinister's orphanage, which was a front concealing a still active Marauders cloning facility. Upon reaching their destination, Psylocke and the Hellions were met by the Goblin Queen, who had been magically and psychically torturing and controlling the Marauders. Following a swift defeat, most of the Hellions were captured, leaving only Psylocke and Wild Child unscathed. Believing that Psylocke was faulting as the alpha of their “pack,” Wild Child attacked her, only to be quickly defeated and forced to acknowledge her authority as the one in charge. Psylocke strategically managed to break her protégés free, and the Goblin Queen was shot dead by Greycrow, which allowed the rest of the Hellions to safely return to Krakoa.

Before the start of a sword tournament to resolve tensions between Krakoa and Arakko, the Hellions were assigned the mission of infiltrating and sabotaging Arakko's forces. In Arakko, they encountered a brutal challenge in the Locus Vile. In shock, they realized not only that the contest had already begun, but also the disconcerting truth about their assignment: their actual objective was to collect Arakki genetic material for Sinister's clandestine experiments. Psylocke was manipulated by Sinister into abandoning some of her fellow Hellions in Arakko in order to return to Krakoa with DNA samples of the Locus Vile. Upon arriving in Krakoa, she was murdered by Mister Sinister as a way to cover his treacherous actions. After being resurrected, most of the Hellions questioned Sinister's motives in Arakko. Psylocke vehemently defended Mister Sinister. It was revealed that her loyalty was rooted in the fact that Sinister had recovered her daughter, now existing in a cybernetic form, having been recovered from the Apoth's remains she had retrieved.

Haunted by the image of Betsy Braddock

In another calculated move, Mister Sinister arranged for the Hellions to be abducted by Arcade and subjected to mind games cast by Mastermind within the twisted confines of Murderworld. His diabolical goal was to seize control of Murderworld from Arcade. Trapped in a nightmarish illusion, Kwannon was forced to believe that she had spent decades constantly hunted down by Braddock. Being able to see through the false reality, she broke free. Following the defeat of Arcade and the liberation of the Hellions, Mister Sinister disclosed to Psylocke his efforts to revive her daughter using Murderworld's technology. He further claimed that, if the Quiet Council learned about his activities, they would have his research destroyed. With no other choice in order to protect her daughter, Psylocke reluctantly watched as Sinister and Mastermind sent the Hellions back home with no knowledge of the ordeal.

Merged with Betsy Braddock

Having worked through her anger in this mental simulation, Psylocke joined forces with Excalibur after Braddock had gone missing as a result of a duel against Isca the Unbeaten. Despite Elspeth Braddock retrieving Braddock's spirit, Rictor was unable to return her to her body. Recognizing the need for a resolution, Psylocke set Braddock's soul free and chased her down across Avalon. As the two women met, they finally had the opportunity to discuss their sorrowful connection. As a selfless gesture, Psylocke proposed temporarily hosting Braddock's psyche once again to complete her resurrection. Excalibur soon learned that Braddock's body had been previously possessed by Malice. Having newfound empathy for Malice's condition, Psylocke tracked her down on Krakoa, ultimately executing her by destroying her essence necklace. Malice was granted a second chance at life upon resurrection in a new body, mirroring Psylocke's own story.

Giving up on Krakoa

Psylocke's simmering and unspoken resentment for Mister Sinister reached a breaking point when the Hellions were ambushed by the Locus Vile, who sought to reclaim the samples Sinister had acquired. Tarn the Uncaring exposed Sinister's deception, prompting the Hellions to seek revenge. To protect himself, Mister Sinister dispatched an army of clones and left to Murderworld through an illegal gate that only he could access, leaving Psylocke behind in anger and defeat. She shared the truth about Sinister's schemes to the Hellions and, after evading the Locus Vile, guided the group to their traitorous masters. Havok and Greycrow wished to destroy the facility, but Psylocke pleaded with them to spare it, finally unveiling her motivations concerning her daughter. However, Empath, acting under Emma Frost's orders, caused Havok to crash Psylocke's only chance of getting her daughter back to the ground. Rescued from the chaotic wreckage by the X-Men, the Hellions returned to Krakoa for healing. The Quiet Council chose to conceal Mister Sinister's transgressions due to his importance to the mutant society. Disillusioned, Psylocke decided to sever ties with Krakoa and the Hellions, opting to resume her life as a solitary assassin bound to death and misery.

Great Captain

Retributing Mister Sinister

Despite her intention to leave the island, Psylocke found herself chosen by the Quiet Council to become one of the Great Captains of Krakoa. Before abandoning Krakoa, she was informed that Nanny had adopted an android baby which had been captured by the Right, prompting Orphan-Maker to retrieve it in Arizona on a one-man mission. As a Captain of Krakoa, Psylocke insisted on aiding Orphan-Maker by herself, but her former Hellions decided to back her up. Journeying to the Right's Zeta base, the group engaged in a brutal confrontation. Nanny met her demise at the hands of the robotic child, causing Orphan-Maker to lose control in fury and kill two human rangers. Sentenced to the Pit of Exile by the Quiet Council, Orphan-Maker was punished alongside a resurrected Nanny, contrary to Psylocke's efforts to avert their penalty. In the aftermath, the Hellions were disbanded. Kwannon decided to remain on Krakoa as a Captain, contemplating the potential for personal growth and redemption. She stopped Greycrow from murdering Empath for his part in the Hellions' downfall, prompting Greycrow to confess his feelings for her. The two began a relationship thereafter.

Still mourning the loss of her daughter, Psylocke was recruited by Captain Kate Pryde to join the crew of her Marauders, which she accepted to keep mutants safe from ill-intended predators. Guided by the vile Cassandra Nova, the Marauders embarked on a treasure hunt, sailing to the Shi'ar Galaxy to rescue the first generation of mutants. In their interstellar journey, they fell victim to the machinations of the secretive Kin Crimson. During the mission, Psylocke probed into the mind of Chronicle, an agent of Kin Crimson. She learned that, billions of years in the past, a mutant society known as the Threshold thrived on Earth, but was slaughtered when warring the prehistoric Shi'ar. With this intel, the Marauders travelled back in time to collect a Shi'ar timedriver that contained the essence of some Thresholders. In Avalon, Psylocke scanned for the device and secured it. Before returning to the present, Cassandra Nova expanded Psylocke's psychic abilities, allowing her to erase the memories of those who had witnessed their intervention. The collected data allowed for the resurrection of three Thresholders, prompting the Marauders to time-travel to assist in mutantkind's ancient war. Upon arrival, the team of mutant rescuers faced the threats of Sublime and Stryfe to ensure the Threshold's survival. Back to the present, Pryde used the genomic material in the ruins of Genosha to paradoxically give rise to the Threshold. In order to accomplish this, Psylocke psychically located the mutant time-traveler Cerebra.

Following the disappearance of Rogue after an encounter with the parasitic Brood, the cosmic warrior Captain Marvel briefed the X-Men on the urgent situation. Determined to venture into outer space for the rescue mission, Captain Marvel gathered a team of mutants, among them Psylocke, who volunteered to retrieve the infected Rogue. The pursuit led them to Ceia II, where the Brood trapped the heroes within a deceptive illusion. Psylocke managed to dismantle the mental simulation guided by Gambit's insight. During the mission, Captain Marvel psychically shared information with Psylocke about Sora, Psylocke's daughter from an alternate future timeline. While successfully rescuing Rogue, the heroes were subdued by the Brood Empress, who intended to create an army of super-powered drones using Captain Marvel as a conduit. During the battle, Psylocke sustained severe injuries inflicted by the Brood Empress which disrupted the telepathic support she had been providing to the team. Captain Marvel launched a counter-attack to vanquish the villainess, with Psylocke advising caution and having Rogue stabilize the exceeding power levels back to safety during the ordeal.

Avenge Krakoa

Moving on Orchis

During the Hellfire Gala, the anti-mutant organization Orchis marred the celebration by massacring most of the X-Men and banishing the mutant population through teleportation. Additionally, they framed mutantkind for the incident, thus reinforcing physical and legal violations against mutants. Among the few mutants who managed to survive and go underground was Psylocke. Orchis heinously designed concentration camps to detain mutants. Psylocke infiltrated the Henry Gyrich Center for Behavioral Studies to liberate captive mutants. Teaming up with the powerhouse M, she embarked on a brutal raid, during which they were enlisted by Captain America to join his new iteration of the Avengers Unity Squad. United by a common goal of targeting Orchis, aiding mutantkind, and avenging the fallen Krakoans, Psylocke joined the Avengers despite initial reservations about their differing methods. Their first mission involved them battling the new Mutant Liberation Front, led by the imposter Captain Krakoa, who reinforced Orchis' malicious narrative. Meanwhile, at the Empire State University, Orchis plotted to deploy a nuclear weapon as the Avengers resisted their influence on society. In a climactic showdown against the Mutant Liberation Front, the Avengers emerged victorious, quelling the threat of a nuclear detonation.

Exorcizing the Omega Sentinel

In a final showdown against Orchis, the Unity Squad allied themselves with the X-Men to dismantle the anti-mutant group for good. Their main objective was to destroy Sentinel City. In horror, the X-Men learned Xavier had joined Orchis. Psylocke was central in the mission for using her psychic knife to extirpate the Omega Sentinel machine consciousness from Karima Shapandar, which granted the mutants tactical advantage. Orchis was no more, but so was Krakoa; with Xavier incarcerated in the Graymalkin Prison, mutantkind had to resettle in a world that feared and hated them.

From the Ashes

Psylocke returns to Japan

In Japan, Psylocke searched for peace. Alongside Greycrow, her time off was short lived when a vampiric invasion took over the planet. Engulfed in darkness, the world was vulnerable to the dark creatures. Determined not to let innocents die, Psylocke protected Osaka from monsters. As the ancestral entity known as the Slit-Mouthed Woman brought immense terror, Psylocke psychically probed into her mind only to learn her sorrowful story. As an act of mercy, Psylocke slayed the villain to end the suffering. Eventually, the heroes of Earth defeated Varnae and put an end to the ascension of the vampires.

Psylocke as one of Cyclops' X-Men

Cyclops reformed the X-Men, relocating them to the Factory, an abandoned Orchis facility installed at the desolated town of Merle, in Alaska. As one of the top enforcers in his assault team, Psylocke acted as one of the psychics of the X-Men. She joined them because, seeing herself as a tool, she considered the X-Men gave her a purpose. From the remnants of Orchis, an organization known as Fourth School emerged, being related to the activation of mutations in adult individuals. In fact, they were secretly manipulated by the cabal called the 3K. One of these individuals was Ben Liu, who got into the X-Men's custody. Alongside Quentin Quire, she performed a psychic rescue inside the depths of Liu's mind. The immensely boobytrapped psyche proved to be challenging to Psylocke's skills and Quire's raw power. They were tormented, but managed to overcome the attacks together. As a result, Psylocke identified the existence of 3K and determined Cassandra Nova was one of them.

Parallel to her contributions to the X-Men, Psylocke maintained a career as a mercenary to protect innocents through her connections to the criminal underworld. She had backup from Devon Di Angelo, a proficient hacker Psylocke had rescued from an anti-mutant facility in Minneapolis. Di Angelo provided Psylocke with special gadgets, including a set of kunai that stored psychic energy and could be launched at distances. However, these operations clashed with Psylocke's efficacy in the X-Men, prompting Cyclops to withdraw her from missions. Completely focused on her solo activities, Psylocke was informed by Di Angelo about A.I.M. smuggling a variant of Mutant Growth Hormone using trafficked mutants. During an auction she infiltrated in Phoenix, she clashed with the Reavers Donald Pierce and Skullbuster, ultimately killing the latter after relating to the victims. The abducted children were relocated to the Factory. Di Angelo detected the auction performed by A.I.M. had been exposed by Shinobi Shaw. In Manhattan, Psylocke met Shaw, who brought her to Cleaver Club, a secret organization that forced young mutants to participate in ringed duels. She furtively infiltrated their prison cells, learning Mutant Growth Hormone was used to empower many of the children. Being incapacitated and kidnapped, Psylocke herself was thrown into the arena and forced to battle the combatants. With Shinobi Shaw's help, she put the captors down and liberated the restrained youngsters.

At the Factory, Psylocke stumbled upon the mutilated arm of Greycrow and was attacked by cyborg animals. After finding Greycrow, Psylocke once again reached out to Shinobi Shaw to get help in her investigation and track her assailant. Shaw identified the aggressor as Ty Haniver, an old associate of his father, Sebastian Shaw. By herself, Psylocke raided Haniver's mansion. With his creatures at his side, he was known as the Taxonomist and trapped Psylocke in tormenting hallucinations involving Revanche and Betsy Braddock as Psylocke. Ultimately, Psylocke was captured by the Taxonomist, who, obsessed with the image of Psylocke, gruesomely added her to his collection of specimens. Rejecting capture, Psylocke broke free and psychically forced the Taxonomist to experience feelings she had had throughout her life, an experience that incapacitated him and allowed her to leave.

Haunted by ghosts of her past, Psylocke's performance within the X-Men was compromised, prompting Magik to have Kwannon be inspected by Hotoru, Rogue's protégé from Haven House also known as Deathdreamm. Hotoru exposed a Yokai spirit who had tormenting Psylocke, but became possessed by it. Psylocke, Rogue, and Magik fought together and exorcized the entity from Hotoru, but it bonded to Kwannon. Understanding the assault had a connection with her dead friend, Mitsuki, Kwannon returned to Kyoto to get revenge at Master Hayashi for the suffering he had inflicted. Shockingly, she found Mitsuki alive and well in his sanctuary. Mitsuki explained that, although slain by her tutor, she was able to commune with the gentle Yokai known as the Lady in White, being granted a second chance in life. Master Hayashi was kept as an undead prisoner under Mitsuki's control. Her cruelty unsettled Psylocke, who could not recognize her kind childhood friend. In fact, as part of a bargain to get control over the Hand, Mitsuki had lured Kwannon to Master Hayashi's ancestral home as an offer to the Lady in White, a ghost that feasted on tortured souls. Since Psylocke rejected an alliance, Mitsuki had her be possessed by the Lady in White. With an army of Yokai and Psylocke in White, Mitsuki marched to Tokyo to move on the Hand. At the Hand's stronghold, Greycrow and Devon Di Angelo had been investigating the secrets of Matsu'o Tsurayaba, ultimately crossing paths with the possessed Kwannon, who gained access to the Equinox Blade for Mitsuki. As an entity of justice, the Lady in White was convinced of releasing Kwannon from her control to save the children maintained by the Hand. Mitsuki was telepathically subdued by Psylocke and taken by the Lady in White. In the end, Psylocke offered sanctuary for the Hand recruits at the Factory.

Attributes

Power Grid

Powers

Kwannon is a mutant originally gifted with low-level telepathic abilities. Ever since having her body swapped with that of the powerful telepath Psylocke and ultimately returning to her own, she has displayed a vast array of powerful psychic abilities she tends to employ during fights.

• Telepathy and Empathy: Originally, Kwannon's powers manifested as a form of intuitive empathy, which allowed her to access the minds of others. This granted her a reputation in Japan as a killer who could hear thoughts. After having contact with the powerful telepath Betsy Braddock, Kwannon's telepathy developed significantly. Her telepathic skill were vital in a psychic operation with Quentin Quire to prevent the death of their patient.Tarn and Cassandra Nova note Kwannon's strength and optimization as a telepath since returning to her body, respectively. Psylocke displays telepathic abilities which enable her to read minds, communicate with others by broadcasting her thoughts psychically and other talents.
  • Mind Link: Kwannon can forge a telepathic link for people to communicate with eachother; this often done on a team. The range of her telepathy allows her to link with Krakoa in the Pacific Ocean while she's in Arizona. Kwannon sensed and read the minds of the city of Osaka all at once, and this allowed her to know where the citizens were hiding and what they were feeling.
  • Psychic Shields: Kwannon's telepathy resists psychic manipulation and invasion. She withstood the powers of Mastermind, Tarn, and the Brood's power dampeners in addition to their false reality.
  • Cloaking: Kwannon can telepathically cloak her presence from the minds of other telepaths.
  • Transference: Kwannon transferred and hosted Betsy's disembodied essense into her own body.
  • Illusion Manipulation: Kwannon was able to telepathically disguise a random card as an invitation. Psylocke merged illusions Mastermind cast on the Hellions team while within one to point of making Mastermind losing control.
  • Psychometry: Kwannon can telepathically scan and read psychic residue of objects and the environment. This allows her detect memories, emotions, and locations.
  • Sensory Manipulation: Kwannon can mentally block people's fatigue and pain.
  • Mind Manipulation: Kwannon used a psychic "tripwire" to replace the urge to kill with the urge to paint.
  • Psionic Energy Manipulation: Kwannon channels telepathic energy and infuses it into objects and weapons to cause additional psychic harm. This is how her powers first manifested.
  • Sedation: Kwannon can telepathically make her targets sleep.
  • Telepathic Detection: With her psionic senses, Psylocke can track other sentient beings by their psychic emanations. She did this to track Wolfsbane's killers.
  • Psychic Knife: After returning to her original body, Kwannon has adopted the most iconic manifestation of her predecessor's telepathic powers: the psychic knife. Described as the focused totality of her powers, Psylocke can concentrate psychic energy over her fists, manifesting a sharp dagger she plunges directly onto the skulls of her opponents. As an effect, such an aggressive telepathic attack can confuse, stun or even kill opponents.
    • Mind Control
    • Memory Manipulation
    • Mind Transference
  • Psychic Katana: In Betsy Braddock's body, Kwannon physically manifested her telepathic powers as a blade, created as an ornate psionic katana. The blade could disrupt the autonomic nervous systems of other living beings, incapacitating them instantly. Kwannon could also use her psychic katana to force her way into an opponent's mind and reveal any thoughts that were originally shielded from her telepathic powers, including those of other telepaths.
• Telekinesis: On various occasions, Psylocke has demonstrated mid-level telekinesis, enabling her to levitate, move and manipulate objects and matter with her mind.
  • Telekinetic Flight: Psylocke can use her psychic powers to levitate and even fly at higher speeds. She floats in the air when meditating and once created a pair of psionic butterfly wings to fly a longer distance.

Abilities

Master Martial Artist: Psylocke is highly skilled in different ninja fighting techniques and other martial arts, including sword fighting. She was trained by the Hand from very tender age and worked as an assassin for years. Her fighting abilities were further enhanced while she was under Lord Nyoirin's tutelage.

Paraphernalia

Equipment

Kwannon used to own Braddock's former indestructible armor crafted by Landau, Luckman & Lake.

Weapons

As an expert swordswoman, Psylocke owns at least a pair of Japanese traditional katanas.

Transportation

X-Men Blackbird, Krakoan Gateways.

Trivia

• The name "Kwannon" (観音, in Kanji character) is an archaic transliteration of her namesake, the bodhisattva of mercy, which would be rendered as "Kan'non" in current Japanese, pronounced as [kanːoɴ].
• The name "Revanche" ([ɹəˈvɑ̃ʃ]) is not simply an alternate derivative of the word "revenge", but rather means a "policy designed to recover lost territory or status." From French origin, it is pronounced as [ʁəˈvɑ̃ʃ] in French.
• The name "Psylocke" ([ˈsaɪ.lɑːk] SEYE-lok) is assumed by some fans to be a wordplay with the words "psyche", "key" and "lock". As "psyche" is pronounced as "psy-key", "Psylocke" would be pronounced as "psy-lock".

See Also

• 190 appearance(s) of Kwannon (Earth-616)
• 5 appearance(s) in handbook(s) of Kwannon (Earth-616)
• 14 minor appearance(s) of Kwannon (Earth-616)
• 26 mention(s) of Kwannon (Earth-616)
• 2 mention(s) in handbook(s) of Kwannon (Earth-616)
• 561 image(s) of Kwannon (Earth-616)
• 17 quotation(s) by or about Kwannon (Earth-616)
• 6 victim(s) killed by Kwannon (Earth-616)

Links and References

• Kwannon on Marvel.com
• Kwannon on Wikipedia.org
• uncannyxmen.net Spotlight On... Psylocke