Third Wonder
Third Wonder, real name Mona Lisa Cheng, is the top hero of The Hero Association of America - H2A - and the #1 hero in the United States, both in terms of popularity and in power.
A rare class of superhuman known as a mimic, Third Wonder’s ability can be most easily explained as the power to mimic other people’s powers. While there are many variations and subsets of mimics in the world, Third Wonder’s is considered to be the most powerful and versatile by far.
Essentially, she can copy any power - real or imaginary - that she sees and has at least a basic understanding of. It doesn’t matter if it came from a movie, an anime, old stock footage, or the news - so long as she’s seen it in action and understands how it works, it’s hers for up to a maximum of 24 hours.
While this alone would make her fairly versatile and dangerous, her mimicry goes even further than this, having the added trait of perfectly replicating the abilities of those she’s made direct, skin-to-skin contact with, regardless of whether or not she’s seen their powers in action or understands how they work. It is a form of genetic malleability that is particularly rare and adaptable.
She can hold up to three mimicked abilities at once - hence her name - but she’s incapable of using two distinct powers simultaneously. She’s also incapable of combining two or more powers into something new. And, if she’s already mimicked three powers, and decides she wants to mimic another one, she’ll have to wait until 3 hours have passed since her last mimicry and then sacrifice her last copied power to make space for it.
What’s more, while she can control whatever powers she mimics when mimicking via sight, she has no innate control over powers picked up via touch. For this reason, she prefers to see a power in action first, and is almost always seen wearing gloves in public, careful to avoid unnecessary contact when on the job and accidentally picking up a less-than-ideal ability or something she doesn’t understand.
Nevertheless, the versatility afforded to her by her powers is nearly limitless. She can tailor herself to any situation and often picks powers she feels will complement and play off of each other well. She rarely jumps into a situation without a plan and some prior research, and she’s widely considered to be the most analytical hero active today. Her strategies are often touted as being foolproof by her colleagues, and nobody is better at dissecting and understanding new or unusual powers than her.
She likes to stay as up-to-date as possible on registered super powers and the abilities of known heroes and villains, and tries to acquire at least a few video recordings of however many of them she can. She has a vast database of archival footage at her disposal so that she can copy the powers of even deceased or retired heroes or criminals on the fly.
Because of the sheer strength and versatility of her mimicry, many have sought to study Mona’s genetics and what it is about her that makes her so special. There’s been more than one request to study her and her powers to see if they can be replicated in any way, but she’s never given any of the offers she’s received any serious consideration.
On a personal level, not too much is known about Mona’s real personality or her personal life. Though she’s one of the biggest stars in the world, hero or otherwise, she does her best to keep her private life private, and whenever she’s on the job, she is by her own admission putting on something of an act. It’s very rare to see her drop her hero persona and make herself completely vulnerable over something.
Nevertheless, she is seen as an inspiration and an idol by many around the country, and around the world. Many people have come to refer to her as ‘The Most Powerful Woman in the World’, referencing legendary hero Takuma Miyamoto, who is commonly referred to as ‘The Most Powerful Man in the World’. She is flattered by this designation, but doesn’t take it terribly seriously, herself.
As of late, rumors have begun to swirl that she has been closely involved in a secret project being developed by Marx Industries, though the exact nature of this project is a mystery. Whatever it is she’s been working on, though, it must be something big - she wouldn’t involve herself in anything less.
