Olevia Alvarez is LASH, current holder of the powers of the celestial dragons of Chinese folklore. Originally just your typical 'pretty girl' in high school with a penchant for fashion, a family trip overseas turned her life upside down. A fight erupting between a nefarious villain and the Chinese national hero LONGWANG resulted in the latter's death before Olevia's very eyes. What no one expected, however, was for Olevia to inherit his powers to become a force for good herself. Returning to America she has found herself the unwitting owner of ancient and mystical abilities that she never even asked for. Now, with a mere cry of the fallen hero's name, Olevia physically transforms into a jade powerhouse and stands ready to tackle crime alongside the teen heroes of Millennium City.

Olevia Alvarez was your typical high school student. Pretty and popular, she had a passion for writing that has been with her since early childhood. Starting a blog about fashion a few years back, it was her goal to go to college and be a women's magazine editor. It would be marriage, kids, and whatever else life gave her. Something normal. Her life was planned out for her... or so she thought.

While on vacation with her family in China they went to visit the Great Wall. During the tour, everyone there saw a battle from the skies wage between the great Chinese hero Longwang and an evil villain named Gu. Longwang, named after the Celestial Dragon of Chinese folklore, was mortally wounded during the battle. As he fell from the skies and landed he died, and his soul... his essence... went to seek out another champion. As luck would have it, it found Olevia, who had been separated from her parents in the chaos and confusion caused by the violence overhead spilling out to the ground. Feeling the instinct to scream "LONGWANG!" and invoking the hero's name, she found herself transformed into a costumed hero. Seeing so many in trouble, she instinctively flew off, and a fight between her and Gu (who was already weakened from the initial battle with Longwang) resulted in her driving him off, though barely.

While the Chinese were less than enthused about an American carrying the power of their national hero, there was nothing that they could do from preventing her from leaving the country. Having a billion people angry at you before you even started your super heroic career was less than an enthusiastic way to begin. Still, Olevia and her parents left and returned to San Diego and she attempted to go back to maintaining a normal life.

It was soon that Olevia's family was relocated to Millennium City due to a job transfer. It was at this time that she began to feel something beckoning her to use her powers. In fact, it was the spirit of Longwang himself wanting her to use her powers to help others. At first perplexed by this, Olelvia began to go out here and there in costume. Deciding that she should at least try to use her powers for some good, she decided on the name 'Lash', as 'Longwang' or 'Lady Longwang' did not feel comfortable as identities to to the cultural implications of having such a name. Still, when the mood strikes her (or the voice in her head doesn't stop cursing in Chinese at her) Olevia does indeed invoke the name "LONGWANG!" and Lash is brought forth to fight crime, wherever she is needed.

Lash was at one point invited to join the teen heroes of New Vigil. While she still had issues with the use of her powers, at the very least found herself amongst peers who had some of the same issues and fears as herself. She continued to train and practice to become a more proficient crime fighter while on the job. Olevia also discovered to her surprise several teenagers at her own school were members of the Young Renegades. She ended up accompanying them on several missions but was never taken in as an actual member. Things seemed for a while to be going very well for her. That changed when her burgeoning career was almost cut short after one disastrous mission. In a fit of anger during an outing with New Vigil, she almost killed one of the villains that they were trying to apprehend. Questioned at length by the police and putting the evil doer in a coma, Lash took leave of the team to reassess her desire to continue fighting crime.

It took some time, but Olevia cautiously went back to her crime fighting career, mostly alongside the teen hero Whitecloak. It worked out well because most patrols ended up at the mall in one form or another. Lash kept her powers more firmly in check and swore to abstain from the collateral damage she was known for while on New Vigil. In the following months, those in New Vigil began to go their separate ways, with some even leaving Millennium City for colleges elsewhere. Lash was disheartened that a number of her close friends moved on and the team disbanded. Going out shopping seemed to be less fun and at times she secretly wished that an alien armada would descend upon her school during home room. Olevia realized that maybe the hero game was addicting after all.

An encounter with the world renowned Protectors of the World during a school ceremony had Olevia front and center once again as Lash. Joining the team briefly, Olevia helped put a stop to the terrorist cell TYR and had a fleeting moment with celebrity by meeting several 'big league' heroes during the fight. The chance happening also made Olevia come to terms with the fact she wanted to be Lash and she missed her time with other super- powered individuals. Olevia reached out to the former members of New Vigil for a reunion party. A handful of them attended the bash which ended up introducing them to several other teen heroes as the fought off an alien attack and saved a princess from out space, befitting the weirdness of her typical adventures. The evening ended with all of those gathered to form The Progeny. Olevia hopes to actually learn from the others and maybe establish herself as an actual heroic presence within the city.

Olevia is what many would consider an attractive teenage girl, with a heart shaped face, dark green eyes and naturally thick full eyelashes. She has shoulder length black hair that is worn a number of ways, depending on her mood or how late she woke up to get to school, though she does try to keep it looking nice and trendy. In her normal form, Olevia stands 5'7" tall (without heels, of course) and weighs in at a thin but toned one hundred and twenty pounds, courtesy of her Pilates class. Olevia has rich, medium color skin that is noticeably well taken care of. Fancying herself as quite the fashionista, Olevia maintains an impressive wardrobe. Quite a few of her looks are quite in vogue, as Olevia is an avid reader of most women's magazines, though a few... well, they are definitely attempts at high fashion but miss the mark considerably to what typical people dress in. Olevia can typically be found with a smile upon her face which is both warm and inviting to friends and strangers alike.

As Lash, Olevia goes through a complete physical transformation. She gains a few inches in height, becoming a very statuesque six foot tall heroine. She wears a black mask and her eyes become pure white in color, her pupils disappearing. Her hair becomes slightly longer and shimmers with a brilliant white-silver. The costume's tunic is a low cut, metallic green that extends to form a mini skirt past her stylized belt. Black leggings, white high heeled boots and white short gloves complete her ensemble as Lash. A green, slightly translucent magical flame envelopes her entire body, moreso when she is using her powers. This flame appears to have no actual function beyond simple aesthetics and does not harm those who might be close to her. One thing that is the same, however, is her attitude. Buoyant, chipper and upbeat are some terms that might describe her... though vacuous might also be in there, as well.

Olevia is a very upbeat, flirty, extremely peppy and sometimes frustratingly air-headed young woman. Due to her fashion sense and looks, she tends to gravitate to the more popular crowd though is social with a number of cliques at school. Olevia is well known for her lack of tact, her often nonsensical remarks and her inability to grasp the severity of most certain situations she is faced with. In layman's terms, Olevia comes across as dumb as a rock to most people. Its rather bizarre, however, that she is actually very book smart and can somehow maintain a decent grade point average in her classes. She is friendly to a fault though conversations tend to gravitate around her looks, herself or her pet. Her main goals seem to be to get to college at this point in her life and soon afterwards marry successful (if things with Soldier Boy or Stonemason don't work out, that is). Olevia also has a penchant for stating how others have a crush on her when its quite the opposite... for example, Olevia often discusses fellow Progeny member Black Ice as holding a candle for her when in truth the roles are reversed. In her early days, Olevia often shirked away from the responsibilities that her powers as Lash gave her. She would duck out of her duties to do more important things, such as buying clothes or going to the movies or even playing with her cat. It is only recently that Olevia has truly accepted the 'Lash' persona and embraced her identity of a costumed adventurer, though at times she is still predisposed to falling back into old habits.

It really makes more sense in Chinese than American. Some people get cool sayings or mantras to transform into super heroes, and Lash gets... this.

When she screams the name 'LONGWANG!' and transforms into Lash, Olevia gains the following abilities:

• Super Strength: Lash has been granted immense physical strength which places her in the upper tiers of the super heroic echelon. While her true limits have not been tested, Lash can easily lift things like tanks and even stop a jet at take off speeds, placing her potential abilities at several hundred tons. Early in her career Lash was responsible for accidentally harming a villain to the point that they died, and as such Lash often pulls back from using her full strength. She also has a nasty habit of creating property damage wherever she goes.

• Durability: With a magical aura about her, Lash has a form of invulnerability against physical and many magical attacks. This power allows her the ability to not only take a hit but shrug off vast amounts of damage that would kill any normal individual. She can withstand artillery fire rather easily and no common weaponry is capable on penetrating her skin.

• Dragon Breath: Not the kind you wake up with in the morning. Lash can actually retch a magically created green flame from her mouth. This ability has a distance of roughly thirty feet and can melt through most earth made metals or alloys if applied long enough. To her displeasure and embarrassment this is not an attractive attack: it appears as if she is vomiting, complete with the unseemly noises that accompany it.

• Flight: Unobstructed, Lash can achieve speeds of mach 3 in flight. In cities and the like she is forced to go much, much slower. Olevia does not have the best grasp on this power. For a long time she was actually afraid of heights and merely hovered no more than twenty feet in the air. Fortunately this has changed and her usual 'flying speed' for what she is comfortable with is around 100 to 150 miles per hour.

• Magical Sight: Her natural attunement to magic allows her the ability to see through illusions and other magically created constructs. Lash can also notice things extra planar in nature. This power also allows her to sense ley lines and magical activity about the world, in essence tapping into something much greater than herself. This also provides her with a certain danger sense. While she can often not pinpoint exactly what is wrong, she can identity that something is amiss in the area. It at the very least is a 'heads up' for her.

• Dragon Blasts: Dragon Blasts are enchanted bolts of magical energy that take the form of green flame. While they appear to be fire they are not and cannot spread like regular flames when they make contact with items, people or objects. Their effectiveness is tied to Lash's willpower and as such their effectiveness can vary from day to day. Regardless, they are quite powerful and can destroy most mundane objects rather easily. Olevia is not the best shot with them and often will spray an entire area hoping that at the very least one of them hits.

• Enhanced Reflexes: Lash benefits from enhanced reflexes that allow her to react quickly if need be. She typically uses it in tandem with her flight or rush at a villain. Even with them, she has a tendency to be rather uncoordinated in actual combat.

• Potential Untapped Abilities: Longwang was known as having powers over waters and winds. So far Lash has not exhibited these abilities. It remains to be seen if in the future she will.

• Physical Transformation: When transformed into Lash, Olevia gains a few inches of height and gains white eyes and silvery hair. She resembles a slightly taller and hotter (if that's possible) version of herself.

• Skills: Olevia has decent knowledge in computer use and a lot of insight into the fashion industry even though she's not out of high school. She also knows her way around a credit card, much to her parents' ire.

Lash unleashes the fury of the Celestial Dragon upon a killer robot. Poor thing never stood a chance.

• Just Not That Good: Lash isn't the most competent of crime fighters and it shows. She is easily distracted, doesn't know her own strength and lacks the training most of her peers have. While she commands vast amounts of power, it is often tempered by her gross inability to properly wield it.

• Dumb: Lash comes across as not very bright. Concepts can be hard for her to grasp. While not actually stupid per se, Lash's faculties seem to be a bit limited in scope. She can be easily coerced or tricked.

• Uni-lingual: Even though she is Latina, her family raised her in a primarily English speaking family.

• Telepathic Resistance: Or lack thereof. Lash is incredibly impervious to physical and magical attacks. Telepathic attacks, not so much.

• Under 21: No bars, no clubs, no anything that adults can do. And her parents expect her home by 11:30pm.

• Uncertainty: Tying in to the first weakness, Lash displays a lot of doubt regarding her powers and ability as a crime fighter. This lack of faith at times will make her powers considerably more diminished as they are tied to her levels of fatigue and self confidence.

• Not Always A Super: Olevia is only Lash at certain intervals, the change necessitated by her yelling the name of the Chinese hero (and Celestial Dragon) Longwang. It's not the most comfortable thing to yell out, to begin with. When not in hero mode, Olevia is as frail as any other human.

• Go to Grace Memorial High School? Olevia is a student there.

• Enjoy fashion? So does Olevia. It could be a great way to start a conversation.

• Olevia is on the school paper and she can cover any number of events.

• Lash is highly attuned to magic. It could lead her to adventures with the supernatural community.

• Longwang the hero had many enemies and allies. One of them with a score to settle might have some issues with Lash.

• If your hero loves to shop or knows their way around a credit card (especially ones their parents pay for), Lash might just be your BFF.

• If Firestorm was a woman and Captain Marvel/ Shazam was willing to have a baby, it could very well resemble Lash. There is obviously a little bit of inspiration taken from Inferior Five's Dumb Bunny in that mix as well.

• Wants to be a magazine editor one day.

• Eats like a model.

• Will often say she is crime fighting with Whitecloak, which is in fact well-known by her allies this is her code word for shopping.

• Has an aversion to her aunt, who incessantly plays karaoke at her house for her extended family. Her aunt's only song in her repertoire is Alanis Morrisette's 'You Oughtta Know' and it drives Olevia absolutely crazy. If she offers you to come over for dinner on a Sunday night, say NO.

• Has a cat, Miss Pussycakes (yes, she has her own PRIMUS Database Page). Miss Pussycakes is a Scottish Fold who is bordering on twenty pounds of weight. Olevia speaks to it constantly like it can listen and react accordingly. She has a slight issue with overfeeding her pet. Olevia often thinks the cat might have super human powers and at times voices her concerns.

• Likes the word TOTALLY. OOC this is a homage to PJ Soles from Halloween. Totally.

• Had a severe infatuation with Soldier Boy. Also had a crush on high school senior Alex Simmons. Unfortunately she never quite realized that they were the same person.

• Olevia has a poor grasp on many pop culture references that are outside of the years she has been alive.

• Has some self esteem issues as Lash. As Olevia, is generally very confident.

• Believes in superstitions.

• Is a major fan of 1980s John Hughes- style films.

• Is afraid of using her strength. Due to an incident where Lash almost killed a super villain, she has been exceptionally hesitant in using her super strength. Lash will often resort to her ranged tactics first (Dragon's Breath and Blasts) before engaging in hand to hand combat.

• Lash has a penchant for property damage, unaware of the level of force she often employs.

• Has numerous crushes on a variety of masked heroes.

• Has worked with the Protectors of the World before and is quite proud of her Honorary membership in its ranks... even if no one associated on the team recognizes her as such.

• Bee: Bee's fashion forward nature and mindset made him a natural to top Lash's super hero friends list. She often discussed at great length any shopping purchases with him as well as allowing him to see new additions to her blog before anyone else. Bee and Lash drifted apart soon after New Vigil folded, much to the heroine's dismay.

• Black Ice: Black Ice is one of Lash's oldest friends in the crime fighting business when they both served with New Vigil. She was always intrigued by him and had a bit of a crush on his 'bad boy' ways (as teen girls often do). Now both in the Progeny, Lash realizes that she has pretty strong feelings for him which she denies and continues instead with a flirtatious friendship in lieu of anything substantial. She enjoys their banter and camaraderie and would probably consider him her closest male friend.

• Blue Freedom: Blue Freedom's reputation precedes her and as such Lash tends to steer clear of the pint sized powerhouse. While Blue's personality has shifted to a somewhat softer tone in her time away from New Vigil, Lash nonetheless tends to treat her with kid gloves.

• Cait Sith: One of the Progeny members, Lash is quite taken by this feline sorcerer. Mostly because he is both nice and caring and he is a cat. Lash loves kitties and hopes that Cait might make babies with her cat, Miss Pussycakes (who she fails to realize is both male himself and fixed).

• Charity Corren: Lash simply adores Charity Corren, much like a little sister. In another world, their social circles might never meet, but sometimes things change. Olevia found strength in the encouragement Mercy gave her to be a better, more assertive hero. Olevia misses her greatly as Charity left Millennium City to study elsewhere after she graduated.

• Heartbeat: Taffi's outgoing and happy nature appeals to Lash, whose personality out of costume is much the same. Lash enjoys seeing Taffi when out and talking to her about almost anything over the Progeny's comm channel. Their chit chat is often a source of consternation for others, as when they are around each other its double the headache.

• HexBane: Jill is a little intimidating to Lash but she welcomes the challenge. HexBane can come across as a bit surly at times to Olevia and so she spends a great deal of time trying to find some sort of commonality to bring them closer. The shadow magic HexBane is capable of also intimidates the young heroine, though she would never show it outright. Lash feels that HexBane just needs to find someone to unleash her better qualities and just perhaps she is the one to accomplish that.

• Kid Ballistic: Kid is something of a puzzle to Lash. She recognizes his bravado but can sense there is a great deal of pain about him. She's actually quite motherly to him and, regardless of his drinking and partying ways, sees him still for the young man he actually is. She treats him much in the way she would a younger brother, but with MUCH less teasing.

• M.E.D.I.C.: Lash appreciates M.E.D.I.C., if not for her sparkling attitude then the fact she always puts others before herself. Not to mention she saved Lash twice during an alien attack, for which Olevia is eternally grateful for. Though M.E.D.I.C. Is not with the Progeny, Lash still maintains some contact.

• Faith: Lash loves having Faith around, especially since she sees the potential to show her the 'real world' through Lash's eyes. Olevia tends to give bad advice to the young woman thinking its great advice, usually about men. Faith is someone she is glad to have met and hopes they can become even closer, feeling rather sisterly towards her.

• Recluse: While Lash LIKES him she's just not exactly what to THINK of him. Just getting past his disgusting table manners was tough enough, though Lash does see him as a friendly and even jovial sort. He's nice to her as well which is a distinct bonus. His terrible super heroic fashion she realizes isn't his fault and so she doesn't hold it against him even though she finds it creepy.

• Soldier Boy: Lash was unhealthily infatuated with Soldier Boy for a long time, only recently relenting that fate will not bring them together. She still receives a good amount of ribbing from friends about this.

• Victory: Lash has spent time with Lisa after their first real encounter, which oddly enough ended in the Grace Memorial boys locker room (don't ask). While members of different super teams, Olevia has made an effort to get to know Victory better. She admires her very grounded attitude and upbeat personality.

• Whitecloak: Former 'boyfriend' (for a full date, which Whitecloak was unaware that's what it was) of Lash's, Whitecloak has since become her favorite crime fighting companion. She enjoys spending time with someone who is just as concerned with looking good as she is. Besides being a skilled combatant, Whitecloak offers a partner in shopping, movies and boy watching. Though Whitecloak's boyfriend has mostly sidelined his crime fighting career, she still sees him from time to time.

LASH STORIES:

Lash: Home By Seven

As you may have guessed, Lash needs to be home by seven o'clock. Think she makes it?

Feel free to leave your thoughts and opinions on Lash!

"She's a nice girl and obviously very powerful, but... she has many things holding her back. I'm sure she'll develop in time and be a great hero some day." -Charity Corren

Fire and Ice: Lash fights beside one of her best friends and sometimes- crush, Black Ice.

"She might be kinda nervous, or scared. But I'd say there's potential there. She's powerful, if not a bit, y'know. Weird. She did keep staring at me, right?" -Soldier Boy

"Uh, well, she seems pretty nice... She's got this... obsession with this guy named 'Soldier Boy', though... Kinda creepy. She's also, er... kind of an airhead, so... Hopefully, things turn out all right." - Stopwatch

"Oh so fashionable, Oh so sweet and oh so fun to be around! I really like Olevia! I know she is going to be a great hero and am glad to know her." - Heartbeat

"Absolutely brilliant in a combat situation, it's particulary hilarious when she shouts "LONG WANG" at the top of her lungs. It does take quite a bit of getting used to." - Black Ice

"She's a total sweetheart, even if she's kinda... not dumb, but she's definitely an airhead. She's gotta get her mind off of boys and clothes and into the biz if she's gonna keep on doing this thing, though. And she -really- needs to stop screaming 'LONGWANG' all the time." - Quarrel

"My sisters and I have yet to come to a consensus as to whether or not Lash is suitable for heroics. I, for one, believe that with proper training and experience, she can go on to do great things." - M.E.D.I.C.

"Miao." - Miss Pussycakes

"She is a nice girl and she does mean well. But, for the love of god, she needs to be kept out of the arcade's lab. The amount of shiny and sharp objects in there, it's an accident waiting to happen." - Stegoboy

"Our fearless leader? She breathes fire and can stomp a car into dust. I can get behind that. And the eyes need their candy from time to time, don't they?" - Kid Ballistic

"Beauty, brawns and brains? Lash has it all in droves, I tell you. It's only natural that she's at the top, some people are just destined for greatness. And this Lash babe? Walking prime example of that, just like myself." - Maverick

"I would never deem her as the brains of the group, or even the leader of the group. But she could probably be considered its heart. Without her, the Progeny probably would not have been formed. We would not have the resources provided by our hideout. Of course, without her I would not have to worry about her playing matchmaker between me and Miss Pussycakes, but that's another matter entirely." - Cait Sith

"She's a bit out there but her heart's in the right place. I do wish she'd stop yelling 'LONGWANG' cause one of these days I'm going to break character and start laughing like a little kid." - Cobalt Crush

"Olevia has a lot of heart, and that's something I admire about her. Sometimes she confuses me a bit, sometimes I can't tell if maybe she seriously doesn't understand something or if maybe she's just acting like it. I do think that she is smarter than people give her credit for. Her intelligence may not come in the form of academic intelligence, but she is able to read people fairly well." - Faith