 Created by: Lawrenz Lano First appearance: The Unconventionals #1  Other appearances: The Unconventionals #2, #3, #4... Other Pictures:  Art done by: John Ridley  | Real Name: Meili Long Hair: Black Eyes: Brown Height: 5 foot 5 inches Age: 17 Country of Origin: Canada (of Chinese descent) Occupation: Student (Phonetics) Familial links: Sister (Lian), Mother (Hua) Base of operations: Pointe-Claire, Canada Ethical alliance: Good History Meili was born blind and learned from a very young age how to echolocate. She was a curious child and every sound around her fascinated her. Sometimes she would mimic the sounds she heard and listen to how they propagated themselves around her. She began to discern variances in their resonance depending on what was in front of her. She eventually learned that she could tell when obstacles were in the way and sometimes what they were. The more she practised echolocation, the better she became at it. When Meili was 8, her mother enrolled her in a school for the blind. She also remarried, but her new husband took a liking to her daughter and one day, when they were alone, Meili felt her stepfather's hands on her body. She panicked and ran crying out of the house. A neighbour found her wandering and called the police. Meili told them what had happened and her mother eventually divorced her husband. After that day, Meili was wary of men and never let them get close. The neighbour who had rescued her turned out to be a martial arts teacher going by the name of Chopsticks. The name was given to her by her students due to the fact that she wore her hair in a bun propped up with two hair sticks. Chopsticks offered to teach her how to protect herself. Unknown to Meili at the time, Chopsticks was a man, but his effeminate ways had kept that fact a secret from most. It was only years later that Meili learned of it, but by that time, she had come to respect her teacher and his gender became a non-issue. Meili learned Aikido and was taught a stick fighting technique that she could use with the cane she usually walked with. During her first year of college, a young woman came to speak at a sensitivity seminar about the handicapped. After the seminar, Meili went to meet her. The woman was named Susan Jenkins. Susan was impressed with the blind woman's uncanny ability to echolocate and invited her to come to the Nolan Residence and meet other gifted individuals. Meili agreed to come for a visit and became a regular volunteer for charity events and soup kitchens. In time, she was eventually made aware of the lesser known fact about the Residence, that it was the base of operations of a special group of people going by the name, The Unconventionals. Meili was asked to join them in their crime fighting activities. She accepted their offer and took the code name Echo. Powers Echolocation: By clicking her tongue or tapping her cane, Echo sends out sounds that bounce off objects in her path. The returned echo enables her to view her surroundings in greater detail. Martial arts: She knows Aikido and has learned a unique fighting style with her cane. Weaknesses: Excessive noise can hinder or disrupt her echolocation. Paraphernalia: Echo carries a flexible cane that she uses as a weapon. Her fighting style combines fencing, stick fighting and whipping. Curiosities: Echo tends to have rather large ears, but it isn't clear if they are naturally large or if they grew to enhance her ability to echolocate. |
