Hollow Knight: Who Is Hornet?

Quick Links

• Who Is Hornet?

• Who Were Hornet’s Parents?

• Growing Up

• Hornet’s Mission

• Is Hornet The Knight’s Sister?

• Is Hornet A Spider?

• Is Hornet Void?

• What Happens To Hornet?

One of the main characters of Hollow Knight, Hornet appears in the game first as an adversary of the Knight, who tests it to ensure that it’s fully prepared to take on the Hollow Knight and contain the Infection plaguing Hallownest. Hornet’s character is favored by fans because of her intriguing dialogue, fast-paced boss fights, and mysterious backstory.

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Hornet has a large role in the game’s story, dedicating herself to the protection of Hallownest and the destruction of the Radiance. However, without paying close attention to the game’s lore, it’s difficult to decipher the finer details of this interesting character.

Updated March 23, 2024 by Casey Foot: Though Silksong still seems to be far off, Team Cherry's head of marketing confirmed the game is still in development recently, so we've updated this article in case you wanted to brush up on some of Hornet's lore while you wait. Hopefully, we learn more about Hornet in Silksong, but for now, this is what we know.

Who Is Hornet?

Equipped with a needle and thread, Hornet is described by the game as the "skilled protector of Hallownest's ruins."

The Knight encounters Hornet several times while exploring the ruined kingdom, though she remains an enigmatic figure.

Unlike most of the other bugs of Hallownest, Hornet isn't affected by the Infection, and instead is trying to stop it.

Who Were Hornet’s Parents?

The birth of Hornet ties directly to the history of Hallownest and the Pale King’s plot to imprison the Radiance. Herrah, Hornet’s mother, longed for a child and made a deal with the Pale King.

If she agreed to become a Dreamer and use her powers to help seal the Hollow Knight, the Pale King would have a child with her. This child was Hornet.

Hornet’s lineage is a powerful one, as she is the offspring of two of Hallownest’s most notable figures. Her father, the Pale King, is a higher being who once ruled over Hallownest and her mother, Herrah the Beast, is the queen of the Spider Tribe.

Growing Up

Sadly, due to the Pale King’s request, Hornet was most likely unable to spend much time with her mother before she became a Dreamer. However, she was still raised in Deepnest by the rest of the Spider Tribe prior to the Infection.

The Spider Tribe also faced an unfortunate end, as the Midwife says, “Our brood is lost to that pestilence of the mind” - like many other beings in Hallownest, most of the tribe was taken by the Infection, leaving Hornet’s home in ruin.

After this devastation, Hornet left Deepnest behind, as the Midwife tells the Knight, “It'd do our spirits well were she to grace us a visit home”, showing that Hornet has yet to return to see the place she once called home at this point in the game.

Hornet’s Mission

Although Hornet first appears in Hollow Knight as one of the Knight’s antagonists, they share a similar goal - the eradication of the Radiance.

Throughout the game, Hornet tests the Knight to assess its strength and suitability for becoming a seal in the Black Egg.

Hornet also lends her strength to the Knight during its battle against the Hollow Knight in the Sealed Siblings and Dream No More endings, where she holds down the Hollow Knight to create an opportunity for the Knight to strike.

Hornet clearly cares for Hallownest and its people and uses her abilities to make sure that the Radiance is sealed.

Is Hornet The Knight’s Sister?

As the offspring of the Pale King, Hornet and the Knight share a father, despite neither of them having a close relationship with him. Hornet and the Knight don’t have the same mother and had very different upbringings.

The Knight was created alongside the other Vessels in the hopes that one of them would be able to contain the Radiance, whereas Hornet was the result of Herrah and the Pale King’s arrangement.

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Despite technically being half-siblings, Hornet’s comments throughout the game imply that they’re very different from one another.

When speaking with the Knight, Hornet does refer to their other sibling, the Hollow Knight, as their “birth-cursed sibling”. However, she also states that she has “Only pity for your cursed kind”, alienating herself from the rest of the Pale King’s kin.

Unlike the Vessels, Hornet is known as “The Gendered Child” by the Midwife and the White Lady, suggesting that there are many key differences between the Knight and Hornet.

Is Hornet A Spider?

As previously mentioned, Hornet’s mother was the leader of the Spider Tribe, therefore confirming that Hornet is at least part spider.

Team Cherry weighed in on this debate in Issue 2 of the A Profound Waste of Time magazine, saying that Hornet is “actually either a spider, related to spiders, or spiderlike”.

Is Hornet Void?

Some fans have theorized that Hornet could be Void, like the Knight and the other Vessels; however, in the game, Hornet says, “Though our strength is born of similar source, that part of you, that crucial emptiness, I do not share”.

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This affirms that Hornet lacks the emptiness that’s characteristic of the Vessels, suggesting that she isn’t Void like they are and is more similar to the other bugs of Hallownest.

What Happens To Hornet?

Depending on what ending you receive, the fate of Hornet changes drastically.

• In the Sealed Siblings ending, Hornet is knocked unconscious and trapped within the Black Egg, alongside the Knight.
• In the Dream No More ending, Hornet sees the Knight’s empty shell, but is free to leave the Black Egg.
• In the Embrace the Void and Delicate Flower endings, there’s a cutscene that shows Hornet waiting outside the Black Egg, only for the Hollow Knight to stumble out of it, free of its seal.

It’s unknown what becomes of Hornet after the endings where she’s free to leave, leaving her fate up to interpretation.

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