#rough draft au

Y E A I CAN

so bASICALLY

Dr. Julian built Echo as a prototype for Zane, so before he died instead of after (the first time lol). Zane didn’t get built until the lighthouse. Echo was used basically to run tests and trials before Dr. J built the final product. Y’ know he wanted to work out all the kinks first.

Yes!! (wouldn’t it be funny if I just said “no”)

Kai, Jay, and Cole call Echo “Zane” at first because they don’t think he should be calling himself “Echo Zane.” They don’t think it’s a suitable name for a person. They don’t do it for long bc it makes him uncomfortable and they start calling him Echo instead :)

There was no “why is Echo acting strange” at all because it was very clear he was a robot from the start

Echo met a total of 2 (two) people other than Julian while living in Birchwood and those were the previous EM of Ice, and Wu. No wonder he remembered where to find Wu!

:O👏 true potential by learning to let go of the past and by understanding that he does in fact have worth and deserves so much love :,)

All the guys like him, but Kai’s big brother instincts kick in immediately when he meets Echo for the first time. It’s like “I’ve only known Echo for two seconds and--”

Meeting Zane is a bit awkward at first but Zane is just,, so happy to meet everyone. Echo feels both threatened and out of place ekfhkfwekjhe

He has a little “oh shoot this guy deserves my powers and place on the team I’m not supposed to be here” imposter syndrome

Zane is just, vibing tho

YES

Echo is confused at his emotions when meeting Zane?? Like he doesn’t know what is wrong exactly??? But something very much is

He doesn’t say much to Zane on the first day at the lighthouse but Zane talks away all day just being so charming to the whole team: helping them out building, telling them all about the light house and his life, asking them so many questions, and everyone loves Zane right away (as they should :) And Echo is not having a fun time hhhhhh

It takes Echo a long time to pretty much forgive Zane for everything Julian did, because,,, that’s where the blame went.

What really brought them closer was after J died (2nd time sksk)

I’m sure it put everything into perspective and the two of them, mostly Echo, could talk about what Julian put them through.

Lots of hugs lots of understanding lots of “I’m here for you if you ever need anything”

Zane becomes Echo’s #1 fan 💖 always rooting for him and always believing in him

>:D!!!!!!!! YEAH YEAH YEAH LET ECHO BE A NINJA

He is such a bean he is such a bean the rest of the ninja love him so much. Wu is so proud of him for mastering his powers and Echo is like is this what if feels like for someone to be proud of you and everyone is like "please protect him oh my f s M"

>:D you discovered a big fun angsty emotions for sure.

Echo spends his first few years of life with one other person and that person never lets Echo forget that he is a precaution. Nothing more, really. He’s just the test run for Dr. J’s big project that will be perfect. You know, more “perfect” than Echo is.

That is not fun! He really believes all that. That he’s less than __. That he was never meant to amount to anything. Getting over that hurdle is how he reaches his true potential.

When he meets Zane and sees Zane for the first time, it’s like all his walls come crashing down. He’s staring at someone that he knew was going to be better than him in every way before he (Zane) was even built. All that time spent with the ninja learning and finding who he was as a person felt invalid, like, he was just playing with them and it was all fun and games, but that this was his reality that he couldn’t escape.

This has been sitting nicely in my inbox for a while I’m sorry!

Echo’s,,, sad at Zane. At least at first. He doesn’t want to be, but he can’t help it. Even if Echo is his own person and really understands that now, for years of his life he’d been told that one day he would be replaced. For years of his life he’d been told how much better his replacement would be. For years he’d been told that when that day came... he’d be scrapped.

When that day never came and he thought Julian died, Echo’s entire world shifted. He had never even tried to imagine a world where his future would be any different than what he’d always been told. Meeting the ninja and growing into his own person felt like he was in control for the first time in his life. He liked not knowing what came next.

But meeting Zane, as you can probably guess, was even more terrifying than finding his father.

It made him think that maybe he’d been living a fantasy. Maybe he’d been wrong to think that his life would end up being any different. Maybe he really was worthless. Maybe he would be better off scrapped. Maybe he’s undeserving of his new status. Maybe there was a mistake. Maybe he was never supposed to be here. Maybe-

In the prime Rough Draft au, Echo and Zane meet when the ninja stumble upon the light house when they’re crossing the ocean at the end of season 2 :D! It is a fantastical cough cough very very awkward meeting!

I think Zane looks human. I think Julien asked for the materials to build Zane but was like “sorry fellas this is what I need to build all that stuff you want me to build ¯\_(ツ)_/¯”

(this has been in my drafts for very long! Finishing it and posting it now)

B O I COULD YOU IMAGINE THAT

ECHO BEING STORED AWAY IN SOME CLOSET.

OH MY GOSH I JUST GOT CHILLS.

THE POOR BABY.