| Ma-Ti |
| This 12-year-old Kayapo Indian can survive on his own in the wildest jungle. He's no stranger to the big city either and knows about the world outside the Amazon basin. Ma-Ti is a friend to animals--he has a pet spider monkey named Suchi--and communicates with them verebally and non-verbally. Although he has little formal education, he has an intuitive grasp of ecological principles. Despite being the youngest, he often seems the wisest. Ma-Ti serves as the Planeteer's emotional link to the earth and humankind. He is also the closest of the group to Gaia and tries to keep them focused on the spirit of her teachings. Often he acts as a cohesive force, working to promote Planeteer unity. Ma-Ti's element is Heart, which enables him to communicate telepathically with the other Planeteers and with Gaia. He is the essence of caring and concern, always willing to give of himself for the benefit of the whole. His empathic abilities with animals are heightened immensely, allowing him to feel emotions that often produce clues to aid the Planeteers. Nevertheless, Ma-Ti is equally sensitive to evil thoughts and can be mentally "deafened" by the close presence of minds filled with hate and wickedness. |
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| A member of the Kayapo tribe in the upper tributaries of the Xingu River in central Brazil, Ma-Ti lived with his mother and father with the tribe for several years before tensions between his mother's tribe and his father's fellow white men escalated to the point of the village being burned to the ground. The evening of the attack, his parents gave him over to the Shaman of the tribe (also Ma-Ti's grandfather) to live, as they knew something might happen. That night both Ma-Ti and his grandfather awoke to see the village in flames. Closer inspection revealed nothing of Ma-Ti's parents except for the decorative necklace his mother had made for his father. After the loss of his parents Ma-Ti continued to live with the Shaman until he was twelve years old, where he learned such things as how to make rubber and herbal remedies. One night he saw a spider monkey being attacked by a jaguar and rushed to save the primate. This monkey, who became Ma-Ti's pet, Suchi, gave Ma-Ti's ring to him as soon as the young boy had freed him from the vines he was entangled in. When he arrived on the island, Ma-Ti was wearing shorts, armbands, and his father's necklace. Upon arrival, Ma-Ti was the only one to instinctively know his power, probably due to the ring's properties (or maybe he just looked at the symbol?). Even though he is the soul of the team, even Ma-Ti has come close to quitting the Planeteers, as he occasionally feels he is too small to match up with the others. However, this is not to last, as he grows to be quite tall when he finally hits his growth spurt. Ma-Ti has only been known to have one romantic interest, a girl named Laura Talbot, who lives next to Yellowstone Park in America with her father on their ranch. For more info on Ma-Ti and the other 'Teers, both real and made-up, check out Heidi's site. |
| Ring Powers Demonstrated: -Reading the thoughts and feelings of others -Reading the minds of animals -"Convincing" people and animals to do things -Locating others, especially Planeteers -Sending "thought messages" -Calling Captain Planet |
| Miscellaneous: Computers make him nervous when they control everything. His ring can't detect or contact unconsious people. He can talk to animals, but they can't talk back. His father's name is given as Chico, a nickname for Francisco. Could he possibly be Chico M�ndez? |