Sunpyre

Fictional character biography

Leyu Yoshida and her brother Shiro were born to a mother who suffered radiation poisoning due to exposure to the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, Japan. As a result, she and her brother were born mutants, possessing identical powers. Her brother would go on to be the well-known Japanese superhero Sunfire.

Leyu first appeared, during the Eve of Destruction storyline, when she joined the X-Men for a single mission, to help fight Magneto. Jean Grey had summoned her brother, but instead got Sunpyre, who she says Shiro had never even mentioned before, as Shiro had refused because he was unavailable at the time. Despite Jean not knowing Sunpyre at all, she easily accepts her offered assistance as the situation was so extreme.

Jean's makeshift team of X-Men consists of long-term allies Northstar and Dazzler. There were also civilians Omerta and Wraith.

Dazzler had problems of her own and with a Jean-assisted telepathic conference, Sunpyre learns of the childlike Age of Apocalypse villains. Thus, Sunprye is one of the few in current continuity to have any idea the Age of Apocalypse actually had happened.

Sunpyre fights valiantly against Magneto, but almost loses her life when the master of magnetism constructs a metallic cocoon around her. After the mission was completed successfully, Sunpyre chose to return to her home instead of stay in the United States with the "arrogant" X-Men.

Banshee later requests her to join his X-Corps (again replacing Sunfire, who did not want to join). This time she was removed from the front lines and instead spent most of her time in the laboratory studying the mutant Abyss. When Mystique, who had infiltrated the group and brought together the other former villains, began her plan for taking over the X-Corps, Sunpyre was one of the casualties. Mystique stabs her to death. When Banshee finds her corpse, he is also stabbed but he survives his wounds. Mystique had wanted to release Abyss, but she got more than she bargained for when the mutant was unable to turn off his powers and sucked the shapeshifter into the dimensional void in his chest cavity.

Sunpyre was later apparently resurrected as a female East Asian mutant who looks exactly just like her (even complete with her signature flame aura) was most recently seen with other former X-Men and X-Men-related characters in Cyclops's Million Mutant March in Washington D.C.

Powers and abilities

Sunpyre had powers similar to those of her brother, Sunfire. She could convert solar and some other ambient energy into ionized plasma similar to the sun's, which she could use to fire blasts of heat and flame, surround herself with an aura of solar-powered fire, and fly close to 100 miles per hour (160 km/h) by riding convection currents created by superheating the surrounding air with her aura of flames. This plasma, while surrounding her, also provided protection against energy and physical attacks. Also, she was resistant to most forms of radiation, and could see heat by attuning her eyes to the infrared wavelength of the light wave.

Other versions

An extra-dimensional Sunpyre, who was a princess on her own homeworld in the Microverse, later appeared as part of Big Hero 6 in Alpha Flight vol. 3 #9. Teammate Honey Lemon pulled Sunpyre out of Lemon's Power Purse, resulting in Sunpyre worshipping Honey Lemon as a goddess and Sunpyre joining the team. Sunpyre and Ebon Samurai were both created to fill in the void left by Sunfire and Silver Samurai, who were being used elsewhere at the time. This version of Sunpyre is not on the current Big Hero 6 roster, as she has returned to reclaim her throne with the help of her teammate and current-retainer, the undead Ebon Samurai.

Scott Lobdell clarified the relationship of Honey Lemon and Sunpyre in the Marvel Teams Handbook 2005. This Sunpyre retained her powers during M-Day. However, this Sunpyre's powers were not mutant in nature, but rather powers inherent to her extra-dimensional Coronarian race.