Anya Taylor Joy's Magik is a clear highlight of the newly released trailer for The New Mutants, perfectly embodying the Marvel Comics character. Illyana Rasputina fans were quick to notice the footage not only showcases her Soulsword but also Soul Armor. Here's a quick rundown on what those are.
Shortly after Illyana arrived as a child to Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters, she was called by the demon Belasco to Limbo, where she was raised and exposed to torment of his underling, S'ym. Belasco wanted to free himself from the dimension, but he first needed to fill the Beatrix Medallion with five bloodstones, created by corrupting Illyana's soul.
Limbo's Kitty Pryde, known as Cat, kidnapped and trained Illyana, who became adept in hand-to-hand combat and sword fighting. After a failed attempt by Magik and Cat to defeat Belasco, the girl once again felll under the demon's control. He trained her in black magic, hoping to further corrupt her soul. Illyana then formed a mystical bond with Storm and Cat, but Belasco's meddling split Magik's bloodstone pendant into three parts.
In retaliation, Magik created the Soulsword and took over Limbo as its new ruler. While wielding the weapon, she grew a tail, horns and fangs, embodying a demonic creature. She banished Belasco from Limbo, returned to Earth (visibly older now after her aging accelerated in the other dimension), and joined the New Mutants.
After a mission in Egypt with Danielle Moonstar/Mirage, a strange armor began to appear on Illyana's body each time she picked up the Soulsword. At first, the armor was limited to her shoulders and, but it soon began to spread each time she used her sword. This is Illyana's Soul Armor, which is seen briefly in the trailer for The New Mutants.
Although Illyana is the creator of the Soulsword, she actually isn't the only one who can wield it. Because of the mystic bond Illyana and Cat had in Limbo, the Soulsword was able to be wielded by Shadowcat on Earth.
The Soulsword isn't an average blade, however. It's a magical weapon, tied to Illyana's soul. When she wields the Soulsword, its primary function is to disrupt magical spells and beings. It can also release a non-supernatural being from spells.
Due to its magical nature, the sword can kill demons, magic-users and other supernatural beings. However, it typically cannot injure regular beings; the 1988-1989 Marvel Comics crossover Inferno was the exception to that rule, because Illyana had become so corrupted that the sword itself did as well. Usually, the only non-magical being the sword can actually injure is Kitty Pryde, even while she's intangible. That, of course, is tied to the deep bond the two share.
At one point, the witch Amanda Sefton became the wielder of the Soulsword after a confrontation with the necromancer Gravemoss. While Amanda was in charge of the sword, she was able to use it to store souls and create teleportation discs. Those differed from Magik's teleportation discs, which were created because of her mutant power.
The Soulsword and Illyana's teleportation discs can be seen near the end of The New Mutants trailer. Her eyes glow a mystical hue of blue, and she can be seen wielding the equally blue Soulsword.
Directed and co-written by Josh Boone, The New Mutants stars Maisie Williams as Rahne Sinclair/Wolfsbane, Anya Taylor-Joy as Illyana Rasputin/Magik, Charlie Heaton as Sam Guthrie/Cannonball, Henry Zaga as Roberto da Costa/Sunspot, Blu Hunt as Danielle Moonstar/Mirage and Alice Braga as Dr. Cecelia Reyes. The film arrives in theaters April 3.