BIOGRAPHY
Takashi Matsuya was born into a wealthy Japanese family. Even as a boy, his intelligence and affinity for technology was obvious. His genius was only hindered somewhat by his severe dyslexia. When he was still a young boy, Taki was in an automobile accident that killed both his parents. Taki survived the crash but lost the use of his legs. A series of operations followed but they failed to restore Taki’s ability to walk. He was left in the care of his uncle who eventually sent him to St. Simon’s Academy, a school that specialized in teaching children with learning disabilities. Taki became bitter and withdrawn, overcome by feelings of loss and abandonment. He poured himself into his inventions, building himself a high-tech wheelchair as well as incredibly sophisticated devices considering his age and level of education. His talents earned him the nickname “Wiz-Kid.” Despite the attentive care of the faculty at St. Simon’s, Taki showed little progress in overcoming his learning disabilities and displayed extremely anti-social behavior towards his classmates.
St. Simon’s soon welcomed two very special students, X-Factor’s mutant wards Artie Maddicks and Leech. Taki was initially jealous of Artie and Leech and tried to prove his superiority, but his 
need for companionship soon outweighed his envy and he befriended them. During the crisis known as Inferno, demons from Limbo scoured the greater New York area for infants of power. They mistook the bald Artie and Leech for babies and kidnapped them from St. Simon’s. Taki tried to save them, instinctively morphing his wheelchair into a weaponized “Goblin Buster.” His first thought was that this new power was due to the experimental circuits implanted during his numerous surgeries, but he soon learned that he was a mutant when Leech’s nullification field caused his upgraded chair to collapse. Unable to defend himself, Taki was easily knocked out by the goblins.
When he awoke, Taki shared what had occurred with the staff at St. Simon’s, who had a hard time believing his fantastical account. Attempts to contact X-Factor in New York failed, so Taki struck out on his own to recruit X-Factor’s older students to help rescue Artie and Leech. Taki’s initial mastery of his technoforming powers was impressive and he easily morphed his chair into various flying crafts. His only limit appeared to be sufficient raw materials to manipulate and an adequate power supply. Together with Skids, Rictor, Boom-Boom and Rusty Collins, Taki set out to find their kidnapped friends. [X-Terminators #1] Taking the codename of “Wiz-Kid,” Taki and his new allies made their way to New York in search of X-Factor. Along the way, they stopped to “borrow” some new costumes and dubbed themselves “The X-Terminators.”
Though he was considerably younger, Taki proved a useful addition to the group. Not only did he provide transportation for the team, he also used his computer skills and trust fund to devise a way to pay for the team’s new outfits as well as the minor collateral damages created by their adventures thus far. Unfortunately, his new teammates weren’t the only ones to learn how useful Taki’s skills could be. A trio of demons in the service of N’Astirh overheard Taki describing how 
computers helped him deal with his learning disability. When they heard that he used a spell checker and that his computer could transfer information, they realized that Taki’s computing skills could help their master, who needed a way to more rapidly cast the many mystic spells that were part of his diabolical plans. The goblins snatched Wiz-Kid and the other X-Terminators were helpless to stop them. [X-Terminators #2]
Taki was presented to N’Astirh, who immediately saw the value of a spell-checking computer. Wiz-Kid tried valiantly to resist but soon realized that he was outmatched by N’Astirh’s demonic power. He knew that he was particularly useful to the demon-lord’s plot and used this as leverage to 
ensure the safety and well-being of Artie, Leech and the human babies the demons had abducted. Taki began to build a super-computer that would process N’Astirh’s spells, his secret hope being that he could stall long enough for the other X-Terminators to rescue them. Eventually, the older X-Terminators arrived but were defeated by the demon’s superior forces. With their lives hanging in the balance as well, Wiz-Kid had no choice but to fully cooperate with N’Astirh. [X-Terminators #3]
Taki’s computer enabled N’Astirh to open a portal between Limbo and Earth through which his demon hordes launched a massive invasion. Left in the care of N’Astirh’s simple-minded servant Crotus, Wiz-Kid and the other prisoners managed to disable the spell-enhancing computer and 
escaped. While fighting against N’Astirh’s horde alongside his friends, though, Wiz-Kid was recaptured by N’Astirh who tried to force him to rebuild the super-computer and reestablish the spell it had cast. Despite the demon’s mystic coercion, Taki resisted and added in an additional piece of data that he hoped would disrupt N’Astirh’s plans. Not wanting to lose the technological wonder again, N’Astirh willingly infected himself with a techno-organic virus to then merge with Wiz-Kid’s computer and combine its power with his own. With supreme physical effort, Taki dragged himself to the computer and used his power to disassemble it, just as N’Astirh was merging his techno-organic form with its components. The resulting explosion seemingly destroyed N’Astirh and knocked Taki unconscious. With the demon defeated, the X-Terminators helped the New Mutants rescue the babies he had kidnapped. [X-Terminators #4]
Following the dramatic events of the Inferno, Taki and the other X-Terminators spent a brief time in the company of the New Mutants before returning to X-Factor. Taki’s battle against N’Astirh had diminished his power levels noticeably and he, Leech and Artie decided to return to school to continue their education. They also managed to have a few harmless adventures along the way. However, trouble followed them to St. Simon’s in the form of the Alliance of Evil. The mutant mercenaries were collecting valuable remnants of energy left behind by the mutant Proteus, some 
of which was in close proximity to St. Simon’s. Taki, Leech and Artie tried to stop their reign of terror but proved no match for the brutal mutants. Just for kicks, the size-changing mutant Tower stomped on Wiz-Kid, breaking numerous bones and sending the young mutant to the hospital. The New Mutants, now under Cable’s leadership, visited Taki and used the information he provided to track down the Alliance and ultimately foil their plans. [New Mutants Annual #7]
After he had fully recovered from the injuries he had sustained, Taki developed a bit of a crush on his teacher Miss Huntington. Naturally, Taki was jealous and suspicious of Miss Huntington’s boyfriend Conrad. His concerns were justified when he saw Conrad rifling through Miss 
Huntington’s files for information on him and the school’s other mutant students. He also heard Conrad spewing anti-mutant epithets. Taki recruited Artie and Leech’s help in pursuing Conrad in hopes of getting proof they could use to expose him. They soon learned that Conrad was part of a much larger conspiracy to locate and exterminate mutants. Together, the three young mutants disrupted their plans and brought them to the attention of the police. Conrad was arrested as a result, leaving Taki to comfort his heart-broken teacher. [X-Force Annual #1]
In the months that followed, Artie and Leech decided to leave St. Simon’s to attend the newly reopened Massachusetts Academy as part of Generation X. For undisclosed reasons, Wiz-Kid did not join his companions. After the Decimation, Taki was listed on a S.H.I.E.L.D. database as among the millions of mutants who were depowered on M-Day. [New Avengers (1st series) #18]
[Note: While it was never stated on panel why Wiz-Kid showed up on the database as depowered, Christos Gage, the writer of Avengers Academy, once stated that Taki had used his powers to manipulate the database, adding himself to S.H.I.E.L.D.'s list of depowered mutants in order to avoid scrutiny.]
Wiz-Kid joined Avengers Academy among a large group of young superheroes. One of the original class of students was a Japanese girl named Hazmat, who insulted Wiz-Kid by calling him an Asian stereotype. Wiz-Kid quickly pointed out that Hazmat was also quite the stereotype. When the X-Men showed up to help investigate a possible traitor in the midst of the Academy, a familial disagreement between X-Man Magneto and Academy teacher Quicksilver quickly turned into a physical confrontation. Wiz-Kid was conflicted to pick a side, due to his mutant status. [Avengers Academy #21-22]
This conflict within Wiz-Kid only grew when the Avengers and X-Men went into open war over the Phoenix Force. He gathered together the other mutants attending the Academy, as well as Hazmat, to discuss the uneasiness he felt over imprisoning mutant teens at the school. When Hazmat pointed out that she wasn't a mutant, Wiz-Kid reasoned that she should also be disturbed, given her Japanese heritage and the history of their people being put in internment camps over perceived loyalty to the enemy. While Hazmat and mutant X-23 decided to remain loyal to the Academy, Wiz-Kid and the other Academy mutants ultimately sided with the mutant teenagers when a physical conflict broke out. [Avengers Academy #30]
After his brief association with the Avengers, Wiz-Kid was eventually among the hundreds of mutants that migrated to the new mutant homeland of Krakoa. Given his technopathic abilities extending to Krakoan bio-technology, he quickly established himself as a pivotal member of Krakoa's space based organization S.W.O.R.D. As Commander Abigail Brand was giving a tour of the station to Magneto, she introduced Takeshi. He insisted that his mutant name was Wiz-Kid and didn't much care if it wasn't cool enough or didn't test well as a code name. Wiz-Kid was quite excited to meet an architect of Krakoa, but Magneto was quick to compliment Wiz-Kid on his important and impressive responsibilities of being in charge of technology and engineering on S.W.O.R.D. Wiz-Kid was also one of the designated "Six" who could combine their powers for translocation retrieval. Wiz-Kid acted as the "Control," stabilizing and unifying mutant circuits. The Six performed this impressive feat to obtain an object that was supposedly the future of mutantkind. [S.W.O.R.D. (2nd series) #1]
Wiz-Kid next helped coordinate the protection of the S.W.O.R.D. station from the invading symbiote horde of Knull, the King in Black. He manned the weapon defenses and established communications through Krakoan gates. He then took a more active role when he teleported to the location of Krakoa's resurrection team, "the Five," who were being protected by Mentallo, the Psionic Analyst of S.W.O.R.D. Wiz-Kid used his powers to transform Mentallo's giant vehicle the "Think Tank" into a Mecha suit, and proceeded to blast the attacking symbiote hordes. These attacks included loud dance music and flashing lights and, when the danger had passed, the Five opted to stay and party with DJ Wiz-Kid a bit longer. [S.W.O.R.D. (2nd series) #2,4]
During the Hellfire Gala, Wiz Kid dressed in a swanky all red suit, with a fish bowl looking helmet 
to really emphasize the unique clothing designs of mutants. Looking his best, Wiz Kid accompanied Agent Brand to a Galactic Council meeting between members of many of the most established races in the galaxy. The purpose of the meeting was to reveal to the members the element that the Six had created through their linked circuit, a powerful metal called Mysterium. Taki explained that this miracle material was as durable as secondary adamantium, conducted electricity at 100% efficiency and yet barely conducted any heat or radiation. Wiz Kid assured the council that this material was what came next. [S.W.O.R.D. (2nd series) #6]
After the teenage Cable went back to his own time and his security duties were taken over by his older counterpart, Cable recruited Wiz Kid for a special mission on Breakworld during the Last Annihilation. During the mission, Taki was targeted by some Breakworlders for looking weak, but he quickly proved them quite mistaken when he converted his chair into some very big guns to dispatch the foes. When they were attacked by a gigantic mecha unit, Taki angrily reminded Cable that he had no intention of dying for the glory of Krakoa. However, Cable's plan came through and the team was able to disable the monstrosity. Then came Wiz Kid's part in the plan, in which, with the help of an Arakkoan power boosting mutant named Khora, he was able to very quickly convert the mecha into a gigantic planet sized super gun that became very helpful in the resolution of the Last Annihilation conflict. [Cable:Reloaded #1]
Wiz Kid continued to be an integral part of S.W.O.R.D. operations, helping analyze Storm after her DNA was altered during a fight and detecting an assassination attempt incoming for the visiting Shi'ar empress. However, it was soon revealed that Taki was actually a mole working for Henry Gyrich of Alpha Flight and by extention the anti-mutant organization Orchis. [S.W.O.R.D. (2nd series) #8-9]
The betrayal of Krakoa by a mutant like Wiz Kid at first made little sense. However, a look into Taki's thoughts revealed that he received the same looks and whispers from both humans and mutants about his disability. Krakoan medicine helped him with his dyslexia but nothing could be done about his broken spine outside of resurrection. Dying before his time was not something Taki was into, however, and he soon put his plan into motion after musing on these feelings. The most important aspect of the plan involved using chief security officer Cable's trust of him long enough to attack him with his own technology based body parts and knock him out. Even this proved little effort for the powerful Wiz Kid and soon he was taking over the systems of the S.W.O.R.D. space station, setting it on a crash course for Earth.
Later, when an escaped Wiz Kid met with Gyrich on Alpha Flight's space station, Gyrich asked why Wiz Kid betrayed his people. Wiz Kid claimed it was because Xavier and Magneto had teamed up with Apocalypse and he couldn't stand the idea of Krakoa becoming all about "survival of the fittest." This was all a lie because Commander Brand was secretly stowed away on Taki, 
having shrunk down with Pym particles. Taki was acting as a triple agent, following the orders of Brand and communicating with her using the Techno-telepathy he had invented. Taki of course loved that he could make Krakoan technology from virtually anything and he liked that he was second in command at a space station. He had played into everyone's assumptions about him in order to pull off his triple cross and was feeling pretty satisfied with himself when Brand reminded him to have at least a little humility. [S.W.O.R.D. (2nd series) #10]
Taki's master plan soon showed a flaw, as the S.W.O.R.D. space station was supposed to crash in the ocean, not the middle of Australia. Taki managed to keep his cool and luckily he didn't become the cause of a huge loss of life thanks to the combined efforts of Cable and Manifold redirecting 
and then teleporting the station back into orbit. Finally, the act was allowed to fall and Wiz Kid revealed that he had betrayed Henry. His hover-chair contained all the tech he needed to hack all of Alpha Flight's systems and send all of the dirty files to the Shi'ar, whose Empress Henry had just unsuccessfully tried to assassinate. After fleeing, Gyrich ran into Brand, who managed to assassinate him by blasting him out of an airlock. Taki saw on his systems that Gyrich was no longer on the station and Brand feigned annoyance that Gyrich managed to "commit suicide." [S.W.O.R.D. (2nd series) #11]
Wiz Kid's stock has catapulted into the literal stratosphere since the start of the Krakoan age. His talents have led to a massive increase in his importance and thus his ego. Will his lack of humility and dedication to a disloyal Brand lead to a fall from grace? Time will tell what more is in store for this master of technology.