Lightning Lass

Reboot: Spark of Earth-247

The Ayla Ranzz of Universe-247 goes by the code name Spark. That universe was destroyed in the Infinite Crisis, but she remains with that team, wandering the multiverse.

Naturally, Ayla Ranzz has always been close with her twin brother Garth, but their relationship has also been strained. Ayla maintains an upbeat outlook on life, while Garth is often driven to obsession, hot-headedness and jealousy.

Ayla was the cool-headed one on the fateful day that she, Garth and their older brother Mekt crashed on the planetoid Korbal. To escape, she suggested they recharge their spaceship by luring the native lightning beasts to it. Instead, the beasts blasted the children and put them in a coma. They were rescued but Ayla didn't awake until months later. All three siblings found that they'd been imbued with electrical powers by the beasts. Also, Mekt had fled their homeworld Winath. Garth idolized his brother and went in search of him. (Legion vol. 4 #64) Ayla remained devoted to their parents, vowing never to cause them the pain Mekt had caused in leaving. At first, Ayla kept her abilities a secret from her parents and Garth's absence singled her out, so to speak. Twins are the norm on Winath, and without Garth, there was a stigma on her. These fears faded after Ayla used her powers to save Winath's presidents' from terrorists. She earned great celebrity and acclaim.

When the Legion of Super-Heroes was formed, Winath sent Ayla as their representative. Although Garth had been a founding member of the group, as Live Wire, Winath's government considered him a runaway minor. She joined the team as Spark and was accepting by the Legionnaires. (Legionnaires #20) Garth was forced by law to resign from the group. He left in a huff and joined a rival group called the Workforce. (Legion vol. 4 #64)

Garth eventually came to accept Ayla's status in the Legion. She helped him defeat Mekt, who had become the criminal Lightning Lord. This battle destroyed what idol-worship remained in Garth for his big brother. (Legionnaires #30)

Ayla's teammate, Chameleon, was immediately infatuated with her and secretly began giving her gifts. Spark believed that the gifts were coming from Invisible Kid. When she discovered the truth she was horrified—Chameleon was a Durlan, and Durlan's were widely reviled in the galaxy. (#81) In time she softened towards Chameleon though a true romance has yet to develop.

Spark was one of a group of Legionnaires who was shunted back to the 20th century by the Emerald Eye for a period of time. There her powers were altered during a mission into the Source, which caused her to develop antigravity powers instead. (Genesis #1, Legion #97) After returning to the 30th century, she began experiencing moments of weakness. The Legion's physician, Dr. Gym'll told her that her anti-gravity powers were causing her pain because her body was out of sync with her brother's. The Legion took her to Korbal to attempt to restore her powers. Ayla died but was brought back to life by Garth, apparently stronger than before. (Legion vol. 4 #101)

When Garth and other Legionnaires were lost in a spatial rift, the Legion disbanded and Ayla returned to Winath. She found that her evil brother Mekt was now in his parents' custody and doing his best to reform. (Legion Worlds #2) She remained on Winath until news came of the Legionnaires' return. Sadly, her close friend, Chameleon, had to deliver the news that Garth had sacrificed his life in their mission. She returned to Earth and rejoined the team. (The Legion #3)

Once the lost Legionnaires returned home Garth's sister Ayla was devastated by his death. When given the opportunity, she accompanied the Legion on a mission to the Second Galaxy and collected some crystals from the site of his death. (#4-5) When she returned home, she placed these crystals at the memorial for Element Lad on Trom. In doing so, Ayla was unwittingly returned her brother to life. Garth's life force had survived inside the crystals, and he was able to fashion a new Tromium body for himself using Jan's transmutation abilities. (#25) Garth was restored to his true self with the help of the Brainiac 5 of Earth-0. He used Speed Force energy to allow Garth to change his body back to normal. (Legion of Three Worlds #3)

After this adventure, the Reboot Legion learned that their universe was destroyed. They undertook a mission to wander the multiverse in search of similarly orphaned individuals. (#5)

Notes

Tom & Mary Bierbaum on Light Lass: "She's mother earth. The sweetest, most nurturing, most empathetic person you'll ever meet, the ultimate expression of the well-adjusted, naturalistic culture of Winath. She also deals beautifully with life's darkest moments, though her emotional Achilles' heel is facing up to the pathological behaviors of her renegade brothers Garth and Mekt. Also secretly harbors an eternally unrequited love for... Saturn Girl." —Interlac (2000)

Powers

Spark has the ability to generate and channel electrical energy. While she was in the 20th Century, her powers she was caught in the receding "Godwave" and her powers changed; she was able to make objects weightless. To regain her lightning powers, she attempted to duplicate her origins on Korbal. Her lightning powers were restored, at an even greater level than her brother's. It is uncertain whether she still possesses the ability to make things weightless.

Rebirth: Lightning Lass II

On Winath, most people are born as twins. Single births are considered the children of Validus, their "Lord of Lightning." Twins Ayla and Garth Ranzz gained galactic fame by defending some non-native beings from the Science Police, who were trying to relocate them.

At home afterwards, the teens' two mothers and four siblings argued about the day's events. Their meal was interrupted by the United Planets' Science Command, who came bearing an invitation for the twins to join a U.P. youth delegation at the invitation of President R.J. Brande. Of the two, Ayla was the more vehement activist, and she refused. Garth (who had never left the city of his birth) traveled to Daxam to meet Brande. He went on to be a founding member of the Legion of Super-Heroes. (Legion vol. 8 #4)

Under unrevealed circumstances, Ayla's super-powers changed from lightning to a light-based power. (#1)

Light Lass is one of the most popular Legionnaires among young people across the United Planets.