History: The circumstances of Kurt Wagner’s life have been unusual from the onset. He is the son of the shape-shifting Mystique and a mysterious man with the human name of Adrian Christian Wagner and the far more ominous name of Azazel. His mother was already an accomplished mercenary, but it is Kurt’s father who was the major driving force in his early life.

It is not clear who or what Azazel is. It is only known he was certainly more than human. Bearing a demonic appearance not unlike Kurt’s, many within his inner circle believe him to be a powerful being from realm known as Limbo. This realm is a major source of mystical energy, which many mystics on Earth have been known to tap. Azazel was sent from this realm on a mission, the details of which are sketchy. It’s not clear when he appeared, but the mercenary organization he founded under his namesake can be traced back to the later years of the Cold War. As part of his mission, he had to sire an offspring who could act as a balance between the two realms. When his path crossed with Mystique, he seduced her through deceit. However, in the process he fell in love with her tough and cunning nature. She eventually became a big part of his mission.

Kurt Wagner was born into Azazel’s mission and would be caught up in it for much of his life. As an infant, Azazel cared for him while Mystique paid routine visits. She remained a constant part of his life, but resented Azazel for deceiving her. From a young age, Kurt’s appearance set him apart. He had a demonic form like his father and a blue complexion like his mother. This prevented him from going out in public and interacting with others without special protection or cloaks. It wore heavily on him from an early age, but Azazel made sure that his son embraced who and what he was.

From the moment he could walk, Azazel trained him to fight and defend himself. Being the son of an inhuman being, he developed reflexes that were far greater than a normal human. By the time he was five, he was already skilled at hand-to-hand combat and could take down foes twice his size. He also took up fencing, which came to be one of his favorite pastimes. When he was eleven-years-old, his teleportation powers manifested. They were found to be the result of the X-gene, which he inherited from his mother. This ability made him especially skilled and he was poised to follow in his father’s footsteps.

In addition to his training, Azazel instilled in Kurt a mixed sense of morality. The organization he founded as Adrian Wagner was a mercenary organization. He trained and managed soldiers, killers, and assassins within a secretive underworld. He commanded fierce loyalty and often implied mystical forces to bolster his manpower. However, his organization had a strict code of conduct. They shied away from terrorism and needless bloodshed. However, they weren’t afraid to kill if the mission demanded it. Azazel preached that his mission was to preserve the balance between the two realms. He never shared the details for reasons he never expressed and this did affect Kurt.

While Kurt continued training under his father, he was also heavily influenced by his mother. Mystique visited him regularly, warning him of the life his father was bringing him into. Having been in the mercenary world for so long, she expressed a desire to keep him away from such bloodshed. One way she did this was to keep him connected to the outside world by exchanging messages with his adopted sister, Marie. Shortly after Kurt was born, Mystique became involved with a mysterious orphan girl that Azazel deemed very important. Mystique adopted her and chose to isolate her from the world of the Azazel. While Kurt remained largely isolated due to his appearance, having someone like Rogue helped him cling to his humanity. It all added to an inner conflict he often hid from his father, who was too often focused on the mission. Kurt constantly questioned whether he could be part of that mission as his father desired.

As the years went by, Kurt took a more active role in the Azazel. By the time he was ten he received advanced training and even went on a number of missions. At the time the Azazel became embroiled in a clash with Black Tom Cassidy, who had aligned himself with Azazel’s enemies. Events turn a turn for the worse when Black Tom teamed up with the Hand, adding more pressure to the Azazel and further weakening his organization.

It all came crashing down on a dark day in Germany when Kurt was fifteen. One of Azazel’s opulent manors was stormed by a coordinated attack from Black Tom and the Hand. Kurt insisted he stay with his father, but Mystique convinced him to come with her. They were not present to see the bloody battle that ensued. When the dust settled, Azazel was gone. It wasn’t clear if he was dead, but he was most certainly no longer within their realm.

Angered and embittered, Kurt lashed out against the Hand with what was left of Azazel’s organization. His youth and his inexperience made it difficult to hold the organization together. The last of the Azazel collapsed when he attempted an attack against the Hand, who were being lead by Deadpool. The battle went wrong in every facet. However, the aftermath took Kurt down a new path.

In his battle against Deadpool, Kurt rescued a mysterious mystic named Margali Sefton and her 15-year-old daughter, Amanda. As a show of gratitude, Margali offered Kurt sanctuary now that the Azazel was no more. With nowhere to go he followed them to an isolated farm in rural Germany. The Seftons were very secretive and never explained to Kurt their reasons for being that way. It became a taboo issue and Kurt was content to avoid it. With the Seftons, he rebuilt his wounded spirit. He also grew close to Amanda. Within a year, they had fallen in love.

He lived a quiet life on the Sefton farm for over three years, keeping in touch with his mother and sister sparingly. That quiet life came to an end when Black Tom entered his life again. In a devious plan, he and his daughter Syrin abducted him and the Seftons. He then used Amanda to bait him into stealing plans for the mutant-hunting sentinels from Worthington Industries. The X-men, including his sister, came to his rescue and were able to overcome Black Tom.

In wake of this incident, Kurt resided that he could not keep hiding from the world. So with his sister, Rogue, encouraging him he joined the X-men where he can put his Azazel training to better use. However, the secrets of the Seftons and Azazel continue to follow him in addition to a complicated relationship with his mother.

Character Breakdown: Kurt Wagner’s character is an interesting mix of traits. Even though both his parents had somewhat devious tendencies, he demonstrates an aversion to such sinister concepts. A great deal of this aversion is centered around faith, which is the key aspect to his character.

For much of his life, Kurt is guided by faith and this makes sense because he lives in a world of deception and half-truths. His mother is a shape-shifter so it’s never quite clear what persona she’s playing. Azazel also kept his share of secrets, never quite telling him what his mission entailed. His only saving grace was to have faith that his father and his mother were each doing what was right and necessary for the world. It is his way of dealing with people who continually keep secrets from him and not being able to go out into the world and investigate for himself due to his appearance.

His strong sense of faith may also be influenced by being surrounded by mysticism his whole life. His father comes from a realm teaming with mystical energy. He sees and experiences magic on a regular basis growing up. He sees it constantly with the Seftons as well since they are practicing mystics. It’s only natural that he would turn to spirituality as a means of making sense of such complicated and unknown forces.

Almost as important as his sense of faith, Kurt demonstrates a strong sense of morality and compassion. Some of this may be from his father, who preached a balance between all forces. However, Azazel was more willing to fight and shed blood. The added influence of Mystique, who wanted to distance him from Azazel’s world, pulled Kurt in another direction. Connecting strongly with others such as Rogue and Amanda helped nurture a compassion that became vital for someone with his appearance and history. That compassion along with his faith is what makes up the core of Kurt Wagner. It also helps Charles Xavier’s message of peace resonate with him as part of the X-men.