Hollow Knight

The Hollow Knight is the titular secondary antagonist of the 2017 independent platformer game of the same name. The chosen Vessel meant to seal away the Infection that had plagued the kingdom of Hallownest, an idea instilled had caused their purpose to fail, leading to the events of the game.
==Appearance==
The Hollow Knight is a lanky black bug wearing a grayish-brown cloak. Their head is a white horned shell, and their eyes are orange to signify the Infection. They wield a cracked Nail, and their chest is scarred, occasionally becoming bloated with the Infection.
As the Pure Vessel, the Hollow Knight's cloak is pure white. Their shell is not cracked and their eyes are black. Their cape is shorter, and they used to wear armor on top of their clothing. As revealed in this boss fight, the Hollow Knight used to have two arms, but somehow lost one in the present day. They seem to wield the Pure Nail.
==Personality==
While the Hollow Knight is meant to not have a personality in order to seal the Radiance's Infection, they seem to have gained one due to the bond between them and their father, the Pale King. Due to this, the Hollow Knight has a mind to be invaded by the Radiance, causing them to become controlled.
The Hollow Knight does not seem to be all there in the present day. During their fight, they start stabbing themself, though why is unclear. It's been theorized that either the Hollow Knight is in so much pain that they wish to die, the Hollow Knight wishes to kill off the Infection within themself, or the Radiance is just trying to open up their body to unleash more Infection.
==Biography==
===Past===
Before the game begins, the Radiance, the old god of Hallownest, was enraged at the kingdom no longer worshiping her, and as a punishment, sent out waves of a corrupting substance known as the Infection, known for digging its way into the dreams of the sick to control them.
The Pale King, the current ruler of Hallownest and the Radiance's usurper, came up with a plan. Since the Infection controls the mind, he figured that a creature without a mind to act on would be able to contain the Infection and its creator. To fulfill this purpose, the Pale King and his wife, the White Lady, gave birth to thousands, if not millions of children, and threw them into the Abyss, hoping to turn these children hollow inside. These children were a new species that would be dubbed as Vessels.
Eventually, after so many Vessels deemed unfit with emotions, the Pale King eventually found a single Vessel who was believed to be truly empty. Quickly, the Pale King took this pure Vessel out of the Abyss and locked the place up, a place of regrets never to be heard from again.
The Pure Vessel was raised by the Pale King and the White Lady as their own, and was specially trained to contain the Infection. By the time the Hollow Knight had fully grown, they were sent to the Temple of the Black Egg to be sealed away, with the only way in being protected by three Dreamers in order to prevent anyone from interrupting the Hollow Knight's eternal duty.
However, much to the dismay of the kingdom, the Hollow Knight was far from hollow. An idea instilled, most likely the bond between them and the Pale King, had caused the Hollow Knight to gain a mind of their own, and as such, was susceptible to the Radiance's control. With it, years of the Infection had swept over Hallownest, turning the once bustling kingdom into a barren wasteland.
An untold amount of time later, another Vessel, an escapee from the Abyss only known as the Knight, would be called to Hallownest after hearing the cry of either the Hollow Knight or the Radiance. Killing the three Dreamers to open the Temple of the Black Egg, the Knight ventures to take on the Hollow Knight's place as the container of the Infection.
From there, the Hollow Knight's fate depends on whether or not the Knight has fulfilled certain objectives throughout the game, as well as a certain action taken during their boss fight.
===Hollow Knight/Sealed Siblings===
After entering the Temple of the Black Egg, the playable Knight breaks the chains holding the Hollow Knight high above the ground, unleashing the Infection's vessel. While the two begin to clash, the Hollow Knight starts to break down, starting to stab their chest before slowly losing the ability to even stand.
Eventually, the Hollow Knight stops fighting entirely. The Knight, seeing this opportunity, absorbs the Infection before the Temple chains them, seeing the new Vessel as the Infection's new shell. 
Should the Knight obtain the Void Heart, Hornet comes around to stall the Hollow Knight, only to be knocked away. After the battle ends, Hornet becomes a Dreamer to prevent anyone from interrupting the Knight's eternal duty.
===Dream No More===
Should the Knight use the Dream Nail on the Hollow Knight when they are held down by Hornet, they are taken to the Dream Realm, where the Radiance is held. The Knight, knowing what they must do, challenges the living light, resulting in a battle.
During the climax of the fight, the Void starts to climb up to swallow the light. The Radiance tries to flee, only for the Shades of the Vessels to chase after her. At the end of the chase, the Hollow Knight barges from the darkness and holds the Radiance's body open to expose her weak point. Finishing what the Hollow Knight started, the Knight's shell breaks apart and tears into the Radiance before her body is dragged into the Void.
While the Hollow Knight's fate during this ending is unknown, the Knight's shell is destroyed in the aftermath. As such, it's likely that the Hollow Knight had died as well in order to release their Shade.
===Embrace the Void===
Unlike the other endings of the game, "Embrace the Void" does not have the playable Knight fight the Hollow Knight in-person. Instead, they fight a myriad of bosses, labeled as gods, to fulfill the Godseeker's quest of contacting the Radiance.
During this fight against an entire pantheon, the Knight eventually encounters a version of the Hollow Knight known as the Pure Vessel, stated to be them in their prime. The Pure Vessel is fought as the final boss in the Pantheon of the Knight, and one of the last bosses of the Pantheon of Hallownest.
After defeating the Pure Vessel for the first time, the Knight has a vision of them surrounded by the other Vessels, a young Hollow Knight included. The Vessels exchange glances before looking up as the Radiance roars from the heavens.
After the Knight fights the Absolute Radiance, they transform into the "God of Gods" and drag the Radiance down into the depths of the Void, killing her for good. With her death, Hallownest is now rid of the Infection. Outside the Temple of the Black Egg, Hornet observes aftermath of the fight before the Hollow Knight appears, having been freed of their eternal duty. Whether or not they become friends or foes is unknown.
==Trivia==
*The Hollow Knight has unused dialogue if struck with the Dream Nail. While most of them seem to be coming from the Radiance, one in particular has the Hollow Knight calling out to their father.
**Strangely, the Pure Vessel also has unused Dream Nail dialogue despite being a modified version of the regular Hollow Knight's boss fight, who normally cannot be dream nailed. The Pure Vessel's dialogue is mainly a repeat of the Pale King's mantra revealed during the flashback in the Abyss. The inclusion of this cut dialogue may hint to the Hollow Knight knowing that they weren't hollow, but pretended to be for the kingdom's sake.
==External Links==
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Category:Video Game Heroes
Category:Indie/Doujin Heroes
Category:Dark Fantasy Heroes
Category:Anthropomorphic
Category:Creations
Category:Deities
Category:Fallen
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Category:Fighters
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Category:Good Vs. Good
Category:Heroes by Proxy
Category:Heroes from the Past
Category:Lawful Neutral
Category:Lethal
Category:Martyr
Category:Mute
Category:Possessed/Brainwashed
Category:Predecessor
Category:Redeemed Villains
Category:Scapegoat
Category:Siblings
Category:Status Dependent upon Player Choice
Category:Suicidal
Category:Titular
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Category:Victims
Category:Virtually Resourceful
Category:Presumed Deceased
Category:Antagonists
Category:Brutes
Category:One-Man Army