Ecks

Codename: Mr. Ecks

Real Name: Luther Harris

Age: 30

Hair: Blond

Eyes: Blue

Height: 5'9"

Weight: 140

Birthplace: London's East End, but moved to a ritzy neighborhood elsewhere in town while still an infant.

Current Residence: New York City

Former Occupation: Spy

Current Occupation: Troubleshooter and consultant (re: private investigator)

Identifiable Marks: A dagger scar across his stomach.

Special Skills: Stalking, sneaking up on, being cheeky, computer hacking.

Likes: Mr. Wye, animals, teasing Illya, being free.

Dislikes: The extremist organization, the paranormal, cooking.

Backstory: Ecks never really had much of a chance for a normal life. Both his parents were top members in the organization long before he was born. When they were on assignment, he was in the care of a disinterested caregiver. When they were both killed on assignment, the caregiver and the organization as a whole suddenly became interested. Ecks was the son of two of the most prominent agents; naturally he would have to be groomed to follow in his parents' footsteps. Ecks was bitterly opposed to the whole idea, but there was little he could do. Even as a young boy, he would be killed if he tried to escape. So he determined he would have to make the best of his situation if he wanted to live. As an eight-year-old, he certainly didn't want to die.

The years passed and Ecks remained a serious recluse who bonded better with computers and animals than people. As a teenager, one of his tasks was to exercise the vicious guard dogs kept at the main compound. He would do that, but also just sit with the dogs and for a few moments, lose himself in an activity that was much more enjoyable than what would shortly be expected of him.

He first met Wye during one of the exercise sessions with the dogs. Wye was terrified of the beasts and refused to go near them, despite Ecks' assurance that they wouldn't harm him despite their training. Ecks knew of Wye, one of the elite alphabet agents, and liked him, despite not understanding why he would ever join the organization voluntarily.

Ecks began the full training to become an agent when he was 18. Those years took their toll; when he met Wye again a couple of years later, upon Zed's decision that Wye should finish Ecks' training and take him on as a partner, he was far more reclusive and quiet than he had even been at first. When Zed left them alone, he bluntly commented on how ridiculous he felt it was that Wye had joined the organization voluntarily. Wye was surprised by the boy's matter-of-fact comments, but didn't really mind and certainly didn't try to punish or harm him for his words.

Despite a rocky start, the two gradually started to bond and Wye began to draw Ecks out of his shell. Wye came to think of Ecks as more of a kid brother than anything else, and Ecks liked that and thrived on Wye's attention and affection. He had not been shown genuine love since his parents' deaths. It made a definite impression on him and helped him to blossom. He began to share long talks with Wye, enjoying Wye's deep point-of-view. He also began showing a mischievous, lighthearted side to his personality, influenced by Wye although it had been there to begin with.

Never having had the chance to experience romance, he found himself somewhat fascinated by the femme fatale Vivalene when she encountered him and tried to get him interested in her. Logic told him she was bad news, however, and he never liked how she was always putting Wye down. Wye couldn't stand her and saw her for what she was, and in the end, Ecks listened to him instead of her.

Ecks never wanted to be a spy, although he had long ago hoped that Wye would train him since he knew his occupation was inevitable. Still, he certainly didn't want to be an assassin. But he learned the art of what to do if it was them or him. Wye hated to train Ecks to that end when Ecks didn't want it, but he knew Ecks would have to know what to do in order to be safe and try to stay alive. Ecks eventually became one of the deadliest spies in the organization. He was silent, stealthy, and his favorite weapon of choice was a dagger hidden in the handle of an umbrella.

He never stopped being bitter at the organization that had forced him into a career path he hadn't wanted and continued to expect him to be like his famous parents. When Zed proposed overthrowing the organization's leadership and taking it over themselves, Ecks was all for it. He knew that he would still have to worry about Zed being over him, but he thought that sounded better than what he currently had to deal with. And, he hoped, he would have the chance to change some of the policies, such as regarding the orphans like himself.

The takeover resulted in disaster and near-death for Ecks when he was caught by U.N.C.L.E. in Hyde Park while attempting to dispatch of whom he thought was Mr. Raymond but was actually an undercover agent. Illya Kuryakin twisted Ecks' wrist around and forced the umbrella dagger into his stomach. The pain was excruciating and Ecks almost immediately fell unconscious---or perhaps died, but he doesn't like to think that. Regardless, Wye definitely thought he was dead upon finding him and he chased the U.N.C.L.E. agents onto a bus in his grief and fury. Bryn Watson put a stop to that assault by knocking him off the bus and he limped back to Hyde Park to tend to Ecks. He found then that Ecks was still alive and struggled to get him to a hospital where neither U.N.C.L.E. nor the organization would find him.

Ecks remembers the days following his near-fatal wound very foggily. He knows he had to try to walk with Wye out of the park, since Wye could not carry him, and he knows he flat-lined almost as soon as Wye managed to get him to the hospital, but he has only vague memories of these things. What he remembers most clearly, to his horror, is repeatedly leaving his body when the pain became too much to handle. The very concept still frightens and rattles him, and though he had to accept the reality of it, he tries not to talk about it and to instead sweep it under the carpet and forget about it.

During one of these explorations, he learned Illya's name and identity. Although he could not seem to consciously control what he did or where he went, he usually ended up following Illya around and bothering him when Illya was alone in his apartment. This scenario always ended up with them sharing deep yet snark-ridden conversations.

When Ecks finally started to recover enough that he remained in his body, he didn't remember many of these episodes at first. Later, the memories started coming back to him as dreams and he longed to believe that's all they were. But he realized they were not.

Wye never came back, as he had promised he would, and as the days and weeks went by, Ecks knew he had to accept that his friend was dead. Wye would never have stayed away if he could help it. It didn't help that during his hours in the operating room, one of his trippy experiences had involved seeing Wye and being told they were both dead. Ecks wanted to believe it was just his own mind and his fears, but when there was no word in reality, he was certain it was the truth. He silently mourned Wye while slowly recovering enough to leave.

He was at a small airfield he and Wye had sometimes used when a fully recovered Wye finally caught up with him. Stunned and in disbelief to see his friend alive, Ecks was moved into a rare show of visible emotion and embraced him in the airport. Seeing Ecks alive and well after fearing he had died, Wye was likewise overcome.

They decided to try New York City as their new home base. While temporarily living in a motel, they searched for a suitable residence and Ecks struggled with feelings of failure on the job and wondering if he still had what it took to be a spy. He decided to do an experiment and stalk Illya for several weeks to see if he could do it without being seen. In this he succeeded and it gave him a certain peace of mind and renewed confidence in himself and his abilities.

Unable to find any jobs for which they felt suited, Wye finally suggested working as private investigators. No spy organization was likely to hire them after they betrayed the extremists, after all, and anyway, Ecks wanted to live free and not bound to anyone for the first time in his life. He agreed to Wye's suggestion.

Of course, living in New York means that they run across Napoleon and Illya with some frequency. None of them particularly like these meetings, but they accept that they will happen and deal with it when it does.

Personality and Interests: Ecks is the dark counterpart of Illya Kuryakin. He is stealthy, aloof, and deadly, capable of striking in the shadows before anyone realizes he's there. With Wye, he is open and talkative. Usually he is serious, but he can suddenly break into a mischievous grin or laugh.

With Illya, whom he naturally holds at arm's length, he generally snarks at and teases. He doesn't treat anyone else in this particular fashion, but because of how and why his and Illya's destinies met for one brief, painful moment, he behaves in a very cheeky manner whenever they repeatedly meet.

He likes animals, particularly dogs and cats, and has some thoughts of raising dogs. He is unsure of how well that would work when he and Wye need to be away on assignment so frequently, however.

He loves technology and is an expert computer hacker. He knows how to disable U.N.C.L.E.'s computer mainframe, much to Illya's chagrin. But instead of shutting down the computer, he only used it to send Illya several obnoxious messages during the time when he was stalking him.

He likes rock music, particularly Queen, and uses one of their songs as the ringtone for his Smartphone.

He still has some curiosity about romance, but for the time being, he is content just to work with Wye on their detective business.