Born in Maui, Hawaii, Alani Ryan quickly developed a talent for surfing under the tutelage of her father Alaka'i Ryan Jr.. One day while surfing off the coast, Alani and her father were attacked by a shark-training, albino villain calling himself Great White. Great White sent one of his sharks after Alani's father. To protect him, she jumped into the shark. At that moment Alani's mutant power to move through solid matter manifested and she caused the shark to crumble. Before Great White could launch another attack, Namor the Sub-Mariner came to the rescue. Following the battle, Alani's grandmother Alice Ryan was revealed to be a former acquaintance of Namor's from the 1940s and a close friend of Namor's former lover Betty Dean. Alani began to learn all she could about Namor and Atlantean culture.
Academy X
Loa became a student at the Xavier Institute and adopted the codename Loa. Along with her fellow students, Anole, Rubber Maid, Kidogo, Network, and Indra, she was assigned to Alpha Squadron, the training squad advised by former Alpha Flight member, Northstar. When Northstar was apparently killed by a brainwashed Wolverine, advising duties for Alpha Squadron were taken over by Karma.
After M-Day, when 91.4% of the world's mutant population lost their powers overnight, Alani was one of the twenty-seven students to retain her powers. She was one of the students Emma Frost placed in a fateful all-out brawl that would determine who would become the new X-Men trainees. Loa failed to make the New X-Men team. Before the fight, she threatened to "crumble" Anole's tongue if he touched her with it. Despite this, Loa remained close friends with Anole, as well as Rockslide.
Loa and several other students were sucked down into Limbo. There, a demon was killed trying to attack her. She moved to protect Anole as Magik decided she needed to take one of their souls to make a new Soulsword. When Magik went to confront Pixie, Alani jumped to attack her, but Magik blasted her to the ground with her powers. Loa survived the final fight against Belasco and returned to the school with the rest of the students.
Krakoa
Loa was killed as part of the explosion of anti-mutant violence in the wake of X-Man's attacks. She was later resurrected by the hand of The Five, a group of mutants capable of combining their powers into a process of resurrection, brought together by Xavier as part of his plans for mutant ascension and became a citizen of the island nation Krakoa.
Powers and Abilities
Powers
-Loa is a mutant with powers that manifested around puberty. Her current powers include:
--Molecular Distortion: Loa possesses the ability to move through solid matter by disabling binding forces. This causes the matter to crumble, or break down around as she passes through it. --Tattoo Markings: Loa's body is covered in several red tattoo markings. These markings appeared when she first used her mutant powers, but their function is unknown.
Abilities
--Loa is a skilled surfer.
--Loa possessed knowledge on the occult, from her reading of the Necronomicon.
Physical Strength
Average.
Paraphernalia
Equipment
Atlantean Amulet:
--Underwater Breathing: Alani can breathe underwater indefinitely but only when wearing the Amulet.
--Amphibious Physiological Adaptation: The Amulet also appears to change Alani's body to be developed for underwater conditions such as compensating for pressure and temperature changes. Additionally, Alani's vision seems to enhance which enables her to penetrate the ocean's depths and see through murky water.
