MAIDENSMAIDENS
Membership: None identified;
at least six were seen
Purpose: Mercenaries
Aliases: None known
Affiliations: Mongdal
Enemies: Black Cat (Felicia
Hardy), Choi Faction (including Mr. Choi), White Fox (Ami Han)
Base of Operations: At least formerly Daegu,
Republic of Korea (aka South Korea);
a number of them apparently perished in
the abandoned Alps Ski resort used as a base by
the Choi Faction
First Appearance: Black Cat Annual II#1 (August, 2021)
Powers/Abilities:
The Maidens had unspecified superhuman powers, perhaps strength, speed,
reflexes, senses and/or other undefined abilities.
They bled when slashed with the Black Cat and/or the White Fox's claws, so superhuman durability is unlikely (or perhaps minimal), although they could have had superhuman healing that just wasn't instantaneous.
They were strong enough to support
their weight by bracing their hands and feet against opposing walls. .
They were experienced with wielding swords, with each typically wielding a short sword (geom?).
They also wore Punae masks (see comments), which had the face of a smiling woman with eyes closed and red dots on their foreheads and each cheek.
History:
(Black Cat Annual II#1 (fb) - BTS) -
The Maidens were a mercenary death cult from Daegu.
(Black Cat Annual II#1 (fb) - BTS) -
Employed by the gangster family Choi Faction (led by
Mr. Choi), the body thief Mongdal's death was
faked, and he was given drugs to increase his power.
Mongdal subsequently sent his mind into
the body of the Tiger Division's ubermensch, Taegukgi, taking control of
him.
The Choi Faction then demanded that the government cede control to them or they would unleash Taegukgi on Seoul.
However, with Taegukgi's power at his command, Mongdal felt that he did not have to listen to anyone, and he --having no interest in politics or leadership -- intended to just use Taegukgi for general destruction and chaos.
Mongdal employed the Maidens to slaughter the Choi Faction at the Alps Ski resort out of which they (and he) were based.
(Black Cat Annual II#1 (fb) - BTS) - Seeking her aid in tracking down those responsible for taking control of Taegukgi, when the Black Cat stopped over in Incheon airport, Tiger Division's White Fox arranged to have her arrested.
(Black Cat Annual II#1 - BTS) -
White Fox convinced the Black Cat to do a job for
the Republic of Korea. They met up with the rest of Tiger Division,
where White Fox revealed that they had tracked the Choi Faction's
transmissions to the abandoned Alps Ski resort. 
(Black Cat Annual II#1 (fb) - BTS) -
The Maidens slaughtered the Choi Faction at their base.
(Black Cat Annual II#1 (fb) - BTS) -
While the rest of Tiger Division provided a distraction and futilely
battled the mind-controlled Taegukgi, Black Cat and White Fox
infiltrated the Alps Ski resort to learn how the Choi Faction were
controlling Taegukgi and neutralize them.
However, the Cat and Fox instead found
the Choi Faction to have been slaughtered.
(Black Cat Annual II#1) - As the Black Cat and the White Fox discussed what could have
happened, the Maidens ambushed them, with one of them hurling a sword,
which the Fox dodged.
The Maidens then surrounded the Cat and
Fox, and the Fox recognized them as the Maidens and appreciated that the
wounds of the dead gangsters matched the Maidens' weapons.
The Cat and the Fox savagely fought and
ultimately slew the Maidens, although they both incurred multiple
slashes on multiple parts of their bodies.
Comments: Created by Jed MacKay and Joey Vazquez.
It is unrevealed how many members
are/were in the Maidens, and so those slain by the Black Cat and White
Fox may have only been a portion of the membership.
And/or they may or may not have been able to heal
from otherwise fatal injuries.
Courtesy of Wikipedia:
Korean masks, or tal, have a long tradition with the use in a variety of contexts. They are also known by many others names such as gamyeon, gwangdae, chorani, talbak, and talbagaji.
Hahoetalare traditional Korean masks worn in the Hahoe byeolsingut talnori ceremonies that date back to the 12th century. They represent the stock characters needed to perform the roles in the ritual dance dramas included in the ceremony. The masks originated in the Hahoe Folk Village and Byeongsan Village, North Gyeongsang Province, South Korea. They are counted among the treasures of South Korea, and the oldest Hahoe mask is on display in the National Museum of Korea. The Hahoetal masks are considered to be among of the most beautiful and well known images representing Korean culture.
The exact origin of the Hahoetal masks is not clearly known, although there is a colorful legend about their original construction. It is said that a young man named Hur received instructions in a dream from his local protecting deity to construct the masks. The decree was that he had to create all of the masks in private, completely unseen by any other human being. He closed himself off in his home, hanging straw rope around the house to prevent anyone from entering while he finished his task. A young woman in love with Hur grew impatient after not seeing him for several days. She decided to secretly watch him by making a small hole in his paper window. Once the deities' rules were broken, Hur immediately started vomiting and hemorrhaging blood, dying on the spot. It is said he was working on the final mask of Imae when he died, leaving it unfinished without a chin. The girl then died of guilt and a broken heart. The villagers performed an exorcism allowing for their souls to be raised to the rank of local deity, and they were able to marry in the afterlife. The Hahoe Pyolshin-gut ritual ceremony was developed to honor them and console their tormented souls.
Punae/Bune (the concubine)
Punae is a forward and sexual character, appearing in the plays as the concubine of either the scholar or the aristocrat. The mask is symmetrical and made of one solid piece of wood. She has a very small mouth with red rouged lips, cheeks and forehead. Her eyes are closed and she has a general look of happiness and good-humor. The mask is constructed with black hair painted on the top of her head and 2 cords/strings hanging from the sides of the mask.
This profile was completed 7/08/2021, but its publication was delayed as it was intended for the Appendix 25th anniversary event to represent Tiger DivisionProfile by Snood.
CLARIFICATIONS:
The Maidens have no known connections to
images: (without ads)
Black Cat Annual II#1, pg. 17, panel 1 (perched
above Cat & Fox);
panel 4 (mostly full bodies
of four, shadowed partials of two others);
panel 6 (closer up view of
two);
pg. 18, panel 2 (Cat & Fox
slashing and kicking, respectively);
pg. 20, panel 1 (Fox & Cat
standing over fallen Maidens)
Appearances:
Black Cat Annual II#1 (August, 2021) - Jed MacKay
(writer), Joey Vazquez (artist), Lindsey Cohick & Danny Khazem
(assistant editors), Nick Lowe (editor)
First posted: 09/26/2026
Last updated: 07/08/2026
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
Non-Marvel
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