Listen to yourself for once. All you do anymore is remember. ... You're stuck, Piotr. Stuck in your memories. ... Take a tip from your little sister. You want to be happy again? You want to live again? You need to learn to forget.
Illyana Nikolievna Rasputina was born on the Soviet collective farm called the Ust-Ordynski Collective, near Lake Baikal, in Siberia. She is the youngest of three mutant siblings. Illyana's brothers were the X-Man, Piotr (Colossus), and the cosmonaut, Mikhail Rasputin.
America
Miss Locke captured Illyana along with several of the X-Men's other loved ones to get them to rescue Arcade from Dr. Doom. After they were freed, Colossus allowed his sister to stay in the United States, believing she would be safe and not be used as a government tool like their older brother Mikhail had been. Professor Charles Xavier touched her on the head, giving her the ability speak English.
At the age of six, Illyana was kidnapped by Belasco and taken to Limbo, where the X-Men followed. While there, Illyana also ran into alternate versions of the X-Men, who had not been able to return to their own dimension. While attempting to return to her own dimension, Belasco grabbed Illyana/ Kitty Pryde held her arm, until she lost her grip, letting Illyana be taken by Belasco. He told her he loved her and turned part of her soul into a Bloodstone, giving her great potential for power and allowing him to control her. While staying with Belasco, Illyana was constantly beaten by Belasco's servant, S'ym.
Illyana was rescued by Storm and Cat, alternate versions of Ororo Munroe and Kitty Pryde. For a while, Illyana was instructed in magic by Storm, and instructed in combat, by Cat. Illyana had to constantly battle demons and some of that reality's versions of the X-Men, including Nightcrawler, to survive. After attempting to return home to her reality, Illyana eventually became Belasco's apprentice, while secretly gaining advice from Storm's astral form. Cat had been turned into a true house cat and was loyal to Belasco. Belasco attempted to use Illyana as a pawn to bring about the Elder Gods. At this time, Illyana's own mutant powers of teleportation discs were discovered. Illyana was forced to kill Cat to save the life of Storm, whom she later killed to save from being used in Belasco's sacrifice. After burying Storm, Illyana briefly teleported home to her parents farm, where they did not recognize her. She returned to Limbo, where she magically caused her own life force energy to manifest the Soulsword and defeated Belasco. A simple looking blade upon its origin, the Soulsword began to develop intricate designs and forms upon itself the more Illyana used it, becoming more powerful with each use.
Illyana returned to Earth only seconds after Kitty had lost her grip on Illyana's arm. She had spent years in Limbo while only mere moments elapsed on Earth. She was thirteen, now the same age as Kitty. The two became roomates and grew very close.
New Mutants
In the School for Gifted Youngsters, Illyana was tutored by Professor X. Illyana joined Kitty in Stevie Hunter's dance studio. As Magik, Illyana joined the New Mutants and trained in the use of her powers in the Danger Room. Illyana quickly learned that she was not nearly as powerful a sorceress on Earth as she was in Limbo, but retained an immunity to the most powerful telepathic probes and she continued to struggle with the use of her mutant powers, often sending people to the wrong place or time.
Belasco made an attempt to recapture Illyana by sending S'ym after her. After the New Mutants were overwhelmed, Illyana secretly used her magic to defeat S'ym and had him swear to her allegiance.
Illyana learned that when she summoned her Soulsword while on Earth, an eldritch armor would cover her body, starting with her left arm. As time went-on, the armor would cover more and more of her. In order for Illyana to be an effective sorceress she was forced to teleport most of her enemies to Limbo, where she was ruler. Many times she would teleport demons from her realm to Earth to aid her. Eventually Illyana revealed that she was a sorceress to her teammates and her brother.
The New Mutants battled Kulan Gath with the Avengers and the X-Men. After most of the heroes perished, Magik and Dr. Strange traveled back in time to before it happened, erasing the event.
Illyana was taken away by Magneto, per Prof. Xavier's request, to battle the virtually omnipotent Beyonder. Upon returning, the Beyonder brought-out Illyana's dark half, the Darkchylde. Illyana teleported her friends to Limbo and attacked them. Kitty used Illyana's Soulsword on her and returned her to her natural form.
Later, Amora the Enchantress kidnapped the New Mutants to Asgard. While attempting to escape, Magik used her teleportation discs and the Enchantress' magics affected the destination and the New Mutants were separated through time and space. Illyana, though, never left and was a subject of interest for Amora. Amora sensed her magic and separated the Darkchylde from Illyana and sent the Darkchylde to gather the other New Mutants as head of her Nightgaunts. After the New Mutants defeated Amora, Illyana sent her to Limbo. Later, Illyana was enthralled by Loki, and the X-Men rescued Illyana and her teammates after Illyana released Amora.
The New Mutants found themselves under the guidance of a new teacher, Magneto. Later, the Beyonder approached Illyana and purged her of her sorcery. er position as ruler of Limbo was transferred to Kitty. Illyana realized that Kitty could not handle the responsibility and declined the Beyonder's gift. Angered. the Beyonder killed all of the New Mutants by obliterating them from existence, but laterrecreated the New Mutants and later used them as henchmen against the heroes attempting to stop him, as they had no memories of the New Mutants. After Beyonder's defeat, Rachel Summers set everything back.
Warlock's father, Magus, attacked the New Mutants and Illyana quickly teleported them all to Limbo. Shortly after, Magus also appeared in Limbo and allied himself with S’ym and infected many of Limbo’s other denizens with the Transmode Virus. Illyana tried to destroy Limbo by stabbing her Soulsword into the terrain. As Prof. Xavier was Illyana's last thought, she emerged in outer space where she was found by Professor Xavier and the Starjammers. She returned to Limbo and reclaimed her Soulsword. She defeated S'ym using tainted magic. Illyana took on aspects of the Darkchylde. Illyana was disgusted with this darker sid of herself and refused to return to Limbo. However, Professor Xavier used Karma to force Illyana to teleport the New Mutants back to Earth despite her protests. This enraged Illyana and she left the team stating that she would make them pay.
Upon returning home, Illyana learned that Piotr and Kitty had been critically injured in their fight with the Marauders. After losing her brother and best friend, Illyana began to believe that there was no reason to fight her descent into her dark persona, until Magneto convinced her to continue her fight against her inner and physical demons. Illyana continued to travel back and forth to Limbo, battling S'ym for dominance of the realm.
Following the death of her teammate Doug Ramsey, New Mutants witnessed the X-Men and Illyana's brother seemingly die on television. Magneto was furious over Doug's death forbid the New Mutants from ever leaving the school without his presence. Retreating to Limbo, Illyana returned in her Darkchylde form with her Soulsword and attacked Magneto, believing she was wrong about him being her Knight in shining armor. The New Mutants separated them and she returned the sword to Limbo.
After continuously watching the footage of the X-Men dying in Dallas, Illyana came to the conclusion that Forge was to blame, as it was his spell that sacrificed the X-Men. Magik took her Sousword and the New Mutants followed to Forge's Eagle Plaza and battled Freedom Force. During the battle, The precog member of Freedom Force called Destiny warned Illyana about her future. Darkchylde teleported Forge to Limbo and bound the New Mutants. After Mirage manifested Illyana's greatest fear, a world over-run by techno-organic demons, Magick understood how evil she was becoming and withdrew her attack, returned Forge to Dallas and restored his health.
Later, Illyana manifested a dppelgänger (doppelganger) of Baba Yaga culled from her mind, based on the literary Baba Yaga of old Russian stories. After all of the New Mutants were captured by Baba Yaga, Illyana teleported to Limbo to cast a necromantic spell to summon her brother's supposedly dead soul to help her. Part-way through the spell Colossus appeared and, assuming the spell worked, Illyana and Piotr rescued the New Mutants. Illyana believed him to be a ghost, and after the battle, Illyana considered casting the spell again, but decided that she was lucky, as the spell could have made her Darkchilde side take full control, and dared not risk it again.
S'ym formed a partnership with Belasco's former apprentice N'Astirh to sequester his control of Limbo. After arriving in Limbo with the New Mutants, N'Astirh's magics prevented Illyana from teleporting the New Mutants back to Earth. Illyana and the New Mutants fought S'ym, who had become strong enough to take Illyana's Soulsword from her. As S'ym attempted to decapitate Illyana, her eldric armor grew to protect her and she teleported the New Mutants to Belasco's throne-room, where her tragic past was finally revealed to them. N’astirh pretended to help the team and tricked Illyana into giving in to all her dark urges. She transformed into Darkchylde.
Magik forced her way back to Earth, unaware that N'Astirh would piggy-back her portal and keep it open for demons to rain on Manhattan. N'Astirh kept the portal between Limbo and Earth open by using ten mutant infants he had kidnapped as points of an inverted pentagram. Illyana battled demons who wanted her to embarrass her dark self and N'Astirh, who wanted her as his dark bride. Finally, Illyana's armor covered her fully. S'ym arrived and Darkchilde battled him until her brother Colossus, who was also fighting the demons in the streets of New York, arrived and rescued her. Piotr was shocked to see his sister in such a state and Illyana was embarrassed and teleported away, taking the New Mutants with her to Limbo. She finally decided to stop running from her responsibilities as the ruler of Limbo.
Unwilling to lose her friend and teammate, Wolfsbane, jumped into a teleportation disc and found a younger Illyana and delivered her before the Darkchilde. Darkchilde emerged from her armor and began to glow of pure light, attempting to kill her younger self, but Rahne Sinclair stopped her, stating that saving the young Illyana would bring peace to the older Darkchilde. Darkchilde found a way to stop Inferno, although she knew she risked purging her own existence from the timeline. Darkchilde opened a tremendous portal and sucked all of the remaining demons back to Limbo. Burning so bright with energy that it hurt to look at her, the Lightchilde hurled her Soulsword into the air and the demons were gone, leaving only the charred remains of her eldritch armor.
Colossus cradled the badly damaged armor and heard someone call his name from inside. Opening the armor, Colossus found the younger Illyana. Due to the manipulation of her own past, Illyana's "Magik" self had not existed. The new version could not speak English. The original Illyana's Souldsword and eldrich armor magically came into Shadowcat's possession. New Mutants returned the young Illyana home to the original Illyana's parents.
Death by the Legacy Virus
Illyana's father, Nikolai, and mother, Alexandra Rasputin, were soon murdered by agents looking for a way to stop a mutant called the Soul Skinner. The Soul Skinner's mind control was ineffective on children, however he came across a device that could age others. He sought to use Illyana's powers for his evil purposes. The X-Men were able to stop the Soul Skinner and prevent Illyana from re-aging.
The X-Men learned that she had contracted the Legacy Virus. Illyana died from the virus despite efforts to cure her. She was the first known victim of the virus. Her death greatly troubled Colossus, who had been on a mission looking for information on the virus when she passed away. During Illyana's funeral, Colossus abandoned the X-Men and joined Magneto's Acolytes.
It was later discovered that sometime in the past, Illyana's older brother Mikhail had traveled back in time and met her when she was with the New Mutants. He showed Illyana a future where she had died of the virus, but said he had found a cure and could alter her DNA to provide it. Although her New Mutants teammates clashed with the future versions of themselves, Mikhail was allowed to try and make her immune. In reality, he transferred the virus to her, hoping that her mystical powers could form an immunity while she was still young. Illyana's teammate Karma removed their memories of the incident.
Upon defeating her mother and Belasco, Amanda Sefton began wielding the Soulsword, the name of Magik, and control of Limbo.
At some point, Belasco decided that he wanted Illyana's soul once more. He returned to Limbo to overthrow Illyana’s successor, Amanda Sefton. Using a Bloodstone containing a portion of her soul, he was able to resurrect her in her Darkchylde form. His creation had all of Illyana's memories but lacked her soul. Disapointed, Belasco banished her.
A rift was opened between Earth and Limbo, pulling several of the New X-Men into the realm where Belasco captured and tortured some of them. Belasco decided to use the innocent Pixie in Illyana's place, stealing a portion of her soul for the Bloodstone amulet. Darkchylde stole a portion of Pixie's soul in the hopes of creating both a bloodstone and a new Soulsword. Magik assisted the New X-Men in battle and managed to free them. Illyana also taught Pixie a teleportation spell.
Following the destruction of the Xavier Institute, Illyana returned to Earth after realizing it was in her power. However, she saw the remains of the school, thought of Piotr and Kitty, and returned to Limbo until she could return again. Later, attempting to create her own Bloodstone to defeat Witchfire, Illyana kidnapped and stole another portion of Pixie's soul. After the intervention of a small team of X-Men, Cyclops offered Illyana a place among her former teammates and family at the Graymalkin Industries and she declined.
Magik later returned, claiming that she was from the not too distant future and that the world and New Mutants would die without her intervention. Illyana rejoined the team and Cyclops allowed Cannonball to reorganize the original New Mutants squad. Their first mission was to subdue a recently returned Legion, where Illyana rescued Karma from his mind and allowed her to use her Soulsword to kill a personality. Illyana was instrumental in teleporting X-Force into H.A.M.M.E.R.'sAlcatraz Island, where they took on the Dark X-Men and Dark Avengers, while Magik teleported all the captured mutants, including Prof. Xavier, to safety. Later, Illyana and Pixie teleported the populations of mutants and Atlanteans to their new sanctuary, Utopia. After battling their resurrected teammate, Doug, and the Hellions, Doug was freed from Eli Bard's control by Warlock wielding Magik's Soulsword and rejoined his former teammates.
After the return of the mutant messiah, Hope Summers, and Cable to the mainstream timeline, Bastion and his members of the Human Council attacked her tirelessly. Cyclops ordered the New Mutants to attack one of Hodge's Right facilities and then to aid Cable and a group of X-Men from Stryker and his Purifiers, where Illyana was attacked by a device that trapped her in Limbo. At the urging of her brother, Cyclops sent Cannonball, Northstar, Anole, Dazzler, Gambit, and Pixie to bring her back. Illyana was also responsible for sending Anole and Rockslide in and out of San Francisco after hours for their heroic acts.
After the attack from Bastion, the team took a vacation and Illyana sensed that Pixie had been captured. Illyana sent Warlock to warn the X-Men and the rest of the team battled the Inferno Babies. After being beaten, General Ulysses and Dr. Noc took Illyana's Soulsword and Pixie's Souldagger and extracted the Bloodstones and completed the Bloodstone Amulet. After Xi'an showed Face what Project Purgatory had done to him, he freed Illyana and Xi'an they returned with Pixie to Utopia, where Legion was being held. Illyana stabbed Xi'an in the chest with her Soulsword and left with the X-Men for Limbo. After surviving an attack in Limbo by demons and the Elder Gods, it was revealed that Illyana brought Legion back into the mainstream reality to use against the Elder Gods that General Ulysses and Project Purgatory were planning to unleash. After saving her teammates from their foreseen deaths, Legion destroyed the Bloodstone amulet and Pixie and Illyana were returned their souls.
Illyana told Cyclops that she was not sorry for what she did and would do it again, but did not need to, because the Elder Gods were the only things she feared. Cyclops believed that Illyana was a threat to the citizens of Utopia and had her thrown in the X-Brig, the Utopian prison, with a vest designed to explode from magic or teleportation and Danger watching over her as a warden. Piotr visited Illyana and stated he would speak with Cyclops to lessen her punishment, but Illyana declined his help, stating that she knew she would be punished for her actions and welcomed it. When Dani Moonstar asked Gus Grim to give Illyana counseling, a few of her demons from Limbo possessed and hid in Gus, until he entered the brig. After the demons pleaded with Illyana to return to Limbo, she refused.
Fear Itself
When Kuurth attacked San Francisco, the X-Men failed to stop him and Cyclops sent Dani to meet with the Asgardian Death Goddess, Hela, in the hope that she could help them to understand. However, on the way to Las Vegas, Dani was forcibly moved to Hel. Discovering that Dani was gone, the New Mutants sought the assistance of Magik and she explained to them what happened with Dani, telling Cypher how he could teleport the team to her. However, Doug made a mistake in a spell and, instead of Hel, he teleported the team into Hell, where they met Mephisto.
Cyclops then asked Magik to use her powers and teleport herself, Colossus, and Kitty into the Crimson Cosmos and meet with Cytorrak. Illyana told Cyttorak that Cain Marko had betrayed him and now served another God. Cytorrak took his power back from Marko and Magik intended to become his new avatar, but Colussus intercepted, becoming the new Juggernaut, much to the displeasure of Kitty.
Regenesis
After the disagreement between Cyclops and Wolverine, she was offered a place in Wolverine's school but she refused. Recently Illyana was released from her confinement and has joined Cyclops' Extinction Team, who participated in a training session with Hope's Lights. After her brother became the Juggernaut she helped him remain in control of himself and tutored him on how to control the urges of destruction within him. He eventually volunteered to be locked up along side her.
Avengers vs X-Men
When the Avengers invaded Utopia in search of Hope Summers, Magik fought alongside her fellow X-Men. She fought and defeated Doctor Strange. The X-Men feigned a surrender and Magik proceeded to teleport out several powerful X-Men, giving them a head start in the search for Hope. When the X-Men find out that Hope is on the Moon, Magik teleports Cyclops, Emma Frost, Namor and Colossus to the Moon. Before they can begin fighting the Avengers, however, Thor crashes onto the Moon and is closely followed by the Phoenix Force.
A fight broke out between the X-Men and the Avengers while Iron Man built a weapon to fight the Phoenix. Iron Man attacked the Phoenix but instead of destroying it, the Phoenix turned all five of the X-Men into avatars. Magik and the rest of the avatars took Hope back to Earth in order to prepare her.[1]
After Namor lost his portion of the Phoenix, the other four remaining hosts gained his portion. When the Avengers staged a raid on the X-Men's prison in order to rescue their fellow comrades, Magik and Colossus arrived to stop them. Spider-Man remained behind to fight them but was no match for the Phoenixes. Magik told Colossus to cripple or kill him but Colossus refused and began worrying over the things Illiyana were saying, believing she was losing control and offered to take her portion of the Phoenix. This enraged Illiyana and led to an argument between them. After being egged on by Spider-Man, they began fighting and knocked each other out, causing their portions of the Phoenix to leave them for Cyclops and Emma.
Cyclops' distraction allows Magik and Colossus to escape. Colossus wallows in regret, having believed that the Phoenix would allow him to transcend Cyttorak's whispers when he lost control in the end after all. After condemning himself as a monster and doomed, Magik revealed that she had planned for this to happen in order to make him understand. She knew that by offering to become the next Avatar of Cyttorak, Colossus would interject and take the burden onto himself; showing him what damnation felt like.
Colossus then realizes that she is insane as she thanks him for finally understanding. Colossus loses control and reverts to his Demon form and attacks her. Magik then teleports him away and leaves him, telling him that regret was her final gift to him.
Magik joins up with Magneto and Danger and together they resolve to break Cyclops out of jail.
Mutant Rebellion
Magik continues to aid Magneto and Cyclops in their quest to aid and recruit new mutants. Together with the rest of the Phoenix Five and Magneto, Magik began experiencing changes to her powers as a result of the Phoenix Force. Unlike the others however, Magik gained even more power as she was now able to conjure energies from Limbo.
Stepping Discs: ability to mentally control "stepping discs", which allowed herself and others to teleport across interstellar distances or through time. The discs are part of a dimension known as Limbo. This dimension is specifically known alternately as "Demonic Limbo", "Limbo-Belasco", or "Otherplace". However, when Illyana mentally calls for a Stepping Disc she must use Limbo as a midway point before she can teleport to an alternate location. It is not known if she was genetically predetermined to travel through Limbo, or if she did so because, having been spirited there as a child, it was the alternate dimension she was instinctively aware of. Magik has succeeded in teleporting herself across continents, from one continent to another, and even interplanetary and intergalactic distances on occasion. Apparently, she can mentally scan Limbo while on Earth in order to locate whoever she wishes to teleport from Limbo down to her, on Earth.
Unlike most other teleporters, Magik could teleport through time as well as space. She has teleported moments, days or centuries into the past or future. Especially, early on, she had difficulty modulating this ability and would often inadvertently travel through time and space when intending to teleport only through space. Magik was told by Dr. Strange that she had potential for great feats of manipulating time on a wider scale.
Sorcery: Magik is the sorceress supreme of her Limbo dimension. The extent of her powers there are all powerful and powerful demons of Limbo did not dare challenge her. Magik had access to Belasco's store of sorcerous knowledge. Magik's sorcery was a unique mix of black magic, that she learned from Belasco, and white magic, she was taught by an alternative-realityOroro Munroe. On one occasion, Magik was shown to have easily inhibited the powers of The Enchantress, while in Limbo, despite The Enchantress being a powerful sorceress in her own right. Magik is capable of casting binding spells, energy blasts, scrying, projecting an astral form, and other talents.
On Earth she is limited to Astral Projection, a Mystical Sense (ability to detect mystical presences), simple spells, and summoning her Soulsword.
Limbo Control: Magik’s Limbo, also known as Otherplace, was not a void as such, but rather a small pocket dimension that is tenuously connected to True Limbo, where time does not pass in a physical sense and as a result no one can age or die. The matter within Magik’s Limbo could be shaped and transformed by the thoughts and emotions of the sorcerer who is its master.
Mystical Armor: The more that Magik uses her magical power on any occasion, the more mystical armor appears on her body. The nature and origin of this armor is as yet unknown. Along with the armor, Magik’s appearance would become more demonic including horns, hooves or a tail. The mystical armor is a natural power of whoever rules in Limbo.
Psionic Shields: she has impenetrable psionic shields, most likely a result of the time she spent in Limbo and the effects of her partially demonic soul. As such even powerful telepaths such as Charles Xavier, Emma Frost and Rachel Summers could not mentally read Illyana's thoughts or sense her psionically.
Magik is highly skilled in the black magic of Limbo granted by the patron of Belesco Chthon as well as white magic of Earth granted by the patron of Storms lineage Oshtur. Illyana is also highly skilled in ancient weaponry, typically axes and swords. Even without her Soul Sword, she led an attack on hordes of rebelling demons using only an axe without suffering any injuries and succeeding in quelling their rebellion.
Mystical Limitations: Magik's magical abilities are far more limited in Earth's dimension.
Dark Half: However, use of dark magic could also trigger a demonic 'Darkchylde' form within her.
Stepping Disk Burden: The farther she travels the less control she has. If she doesn't concentrate while teleporting she can inadvertently teleport through time as well as space. Going through time is far worse than simply traversing space; after such jaunts she is psychically drained and must regain her strength before attempting another great teleport. Magik has sense honed this ability and no longer has difficulty differentiating time and space with vast jumps.
The Soulsword, a sword that could disrupt most spells or slay magical beings, but which passed through normal people without harming them. When using it, her body became covered in a mysterious mystic armor.
The New Mutants' encounter with Mikhail Rasputin was retroactively added in the miniseries 'Truth or Death'. It supposedly takes place between New Mutants #25 and #26. She first appeared as magik in New Mutants #14.
Mikhail is the one that set up the infection of Illyana with the legacy virus, as an attempt to save her from it.
"Ilyana" is actually the Bulgarian and Serb feminine of the masculine name "Ilya". English equivalents of the name "Ilya" are "Elijah", "Elias" and "Elliot". In Russian language, the name "Ilyana" doesn't exist at all.
Illyana has a stuffed doll called "Bamfy" which looks similar to Bamf and Nightcrawler.