M (Marvel Comics)

Early life

Monet St. Croix was born in Sarajevo, Bosnia, and is the second child of Afro-Monégasque ambassador Cartier St. Croix and his Algerian wife.^[2] Monet was raised Muslim and grew up pompous and spoiled as a result of being the favored child of her father.^[3] Monet's brother Marius, also known as Emplate, is banished from the St. Croix home shortly after his mother's death, but returns after learning dark magic and requests that Monet join him in conquering another dimension. Monet rejects Marius' offer, leading him to transform her into a creature dubbed Penance. Monet's younger twin sisters, Nicole and Claudette, banish Emplate to another dimension. Monet follows Emplate in an attempt to return herself to normal, but is enslaved, becoming a regular source of bone marrow for Emplate.^[4]

Afraid their father would break down after the loss of his favorite child, Nicole and Claudette decide to impersonate her in their fused form. This version of Monet would have been identical to the original, but shares Claudette's autism, occasionally leaving her in catatonic stupors. While the twins are impersonating their sister, they are among the mutants captured by the alien Phalanx.^[5]

Generation X

After being rescued from the Phalanx by Banshee and Emma Frost, the mutants form the team Generation X, with Banshee and Frost training them. Shortly after the school opens, Emplate attacks some of the students at the airport, but is chases away by the newly formed team. Shortly after returning to the school, Gateway reappears on the front lawn with Monet, still trapped in the form of Penance.^[6] Beast later diagnoses "Monet" with autism.^[7]

M/Penance/M-Twins

Monet, alongside most of Generation X, are later attacked by Operation: Zero Tolerance. Banshee, Emma Frost, and Penance meet Emplate's henchman D.O.A., who arranges a deal: Monet's location in exchange for Penance.^[8] After being attacked by Prime Sentinel forces, Synch synchronizes with Monet and learns her nature as a gestalt being. Skin's cousin Gil sets off a huge explosion to destroy the Sentinels, which separates Nicole and Claudette and leaves them comatose.^[9]

Soon after, Emplate returns and fuses with the M-twins, creating a new persona called "M-Plate". When the three of them separate, the twins finally learn what their brother did to Monet. Synch convinces Nicole to reveal the truth to the rest of the team. The twins merge with Monet, restoring her human form and trapping the twins inside Penance.^[4]

Returning to normal, the traumatized M becomes self-reliant, harsh and defensive, causing her to clash with many of her teammates, except for Synch, with whom she starts a brief romantic relationship. When Emplate returns, Jubilee causes an explosion which separates the twins and makes Penance a separate entity.^[10]

Final days of Generation X

When Monet returns, she and Synch continue to grow close. Monet is devastated when Synch sacrifices himself to stop a bomb placed in the academy by Emma Frost's sister Adrienne.^[11] After the incident, the team questions Emma's leadership abilities after learning that she has killed Adrienne in retribution for Synch's death. The school closes when the students decide that their instructors are no longer fit to teach them.

X-Corps/X-Corporation

After Generation X disbands, M temporarily joins Banshee's militant X-Corps to keep an eye on him. However, the X-Corps are soon destroyed by Mystique, leaving M to join the X-Corporation's European branch in Paris.^{[volume and issue needed]}

X-Factor Investigations

Following the events of House of M and the shutdown of X-Corporation, M joins X-Factor Investigations, a private detective agency run by Jamie Madrox.

Monet has a brief relationship with Madrox, but this falls apart when Siryn reveals she is pregnant with Madrox's child. Monet and Siryn become close despite this.^{[volume and issue needed]}

Operating out of Detroit and return to New York City

Shortly after the events of "Secret Invasion", Monet takes part in a rescue mission for Darwin, is present at the birth of Siryn's child,^[12] and taking down a shipment of weapons designed to take out mutants.^[13] In the aftermath of the battle with Cortex (an evil duplicate of Jamie Madrox), X-Factor unofficially splits due to tensions between Madrox and Siryn. Strong Guy and Madrox move back to New York while Monet, Darwin, and the others stay in Detroit to work under Siryn.^{[volume and issue needed]}

Monet is shown to be dying from a serious brain injury when she battles Pluto, who severely beats her, when Wolfsbane's son Tier arrives and kills Pluto. M dies from her injuries,^[14] but is resurrected by Strong Guy shortly afterward when he becomes Lord of Hell.^[15]

All-New, All-Different Marvel

In the wake of the M-Pox crisis, Monet joins Magneto's team of X-Men, with the goal of protecting mutantkind at any cost. During this time, she developed a love-hate relationship with the reformed Sabretooth.^[16] While investigating a mysterious illness and series of abductions that befell the Morlocks,^[17] M and Sabretooth encounter Emplate.^[18] Emplate possesses M, cursing her with his hunger for bone marrow. Sabretooth tells M that her secret is safe with him and that she can feed on him whenever she needs.^[19] M eventually breaks free from Emplate's control, curing herself of her condition.^[20]

Krakoan Age

M is later seen living in the sovereign nation of Krakoa, constructed by Professor X as a mutant homeland. She is among the X-Men selected to battle Orchis before they can bring the Sentinel Mother Mold online. During the battle, M is killed by Orchis soldiers.^[21] She is quickly resurrected by the Five.^[22]

Claudette and Nicole St. Croix also appear as citizens of Krakoa, both having assumed forms similar to Penance.^[23]

During the Krakoan Age, Monet joins X-Corp, now operating as a business front for Krakoa,^[24] and the Avengers Unity Division.^[25] She is a candidate for the X-Men vote, but loses to Firestar.^[26]

Fall of X and Post-Krakoa

During the Fall of X, Monet briefly battles Black Panther, and takes part in a tournament to determine Apocalypse's heir.^[1] After the fall of Krakoa, Monet is imprisoned in the X-Mansion, which has since been repurposed as a mutant prison run by Corina Ellis.^[27]

Age of Apocalypse

Alternate universe versions of Claudette St. Croix, Nicole St. Croix, and Emplate appear in "Age of Apocalypse", where they are part of Apocalypse's Elite Mutant Force.

A girl referred to as "Claudia" (who may be one or the two merged St. Croix twins) is known as Know-It-All and is part of Generation Next, having merged with the team's computer system.^{[volume and issue needed]}

Additionally, Monet St. Croix appears as Penance. Following her death, Monet is resurrected by Prophet to aid his cause. Monet begins rallying mutants to her cause which was to seek forgiveness for their past crimes and to rebuild their world.^{[volume and issue needed]}

Others

Alternate versions of Monet appear in X-Men: The End, X-Men '92, as a member of the X-Babies alongside a version of Penance,^[53] and as the Amalgam Comics character Retribution, combined with DC Comics character Firehair.^[54]