Ring!

Ness cracked an eye open and stuffed her head back underneath her pillow.

Ring!

Her head ached and her tongue had apparently been replaced with sandpaper overnight.

Ring!

She sighed and shoved the pillow off her face, eyes drifting towards the clock on the bedside table.

Ring!

14.23. What the /hell/ had she been doing last night?

Ring!

There'd been...robot spiders. Hundreds of them.

Ring!

Siren's Call. How long had she stayed out there, fighting alongside the Longbow?

Ring!

She groaned and dragged herself out of bed, reaching for her cell.

"Ngh?"

"Vanessa?" The voice was low, urgent and somewhere between angry and afraid.

"..Dad?"

There was a brief pause "No. Daniel." Another pause. "Liebowitz."

"Mph." Ness rolled back onto the bed and closed her eyes again. "I was totally readin-"

"Shh!" Dan hissed into the phone, loud enough for the sound to distort. "I need your help!"

Something in his voice made her sit up, shedding her sleepiness instantly. "What's going on?"

"I had a meeting. With All Made Up, across town. We're sat in the meeting room and all of a sudden the place is crawling with..well..I'm not sure what they are."

She climbed out of bed, one foot tangling in the quilt and having to hop the last few inches. "...Daniel. Did you get kidnapped by Devouring Earth?"

"I don't know!" He hissed, frantically.

"Big trees. Huge crystally things. Giant mushrooms?"

"Yes!"

She scraped her hair out of her eyes and hunted for clean underwear and a costume that hadn't been too badly damaged. "Lawyer held hostage by Devouring Earth. Do you even know how fucking clichéd that is?"

"..are you coming, or not?"

"Hang on. I'm trying to find..." Ness reached over and extracted Evil from a thong, newly emblazoned with the Wolfcry Logo, sliding it up over her thighs. "Nevermind. Where are you?"

"Talos Island. 286 Main Street."

"Hang on. They let you keep your /phone?/"

"..Vanessa. A walking rock keeps beating it's chest in front of me. I'm not sure it even knows what a cellphone is."

"Do you know what they want?" She located a pair of leathers from the floor and struggled into them one-handed and looked around for her boots. One was on the floor under the bed, the other inexplicably on the dressing table.

"No!"

"OK, fine. Hang tight. I'm on my way." She pushed open the bedroom door, balancing on one leg as she laced her boots and made her way out of the apartment.

Ness touched down - if it could really be called that, since she'd flown the entire way only a few feet from the ground, much to the horror of several hundred pedestrians - in front of 'All Made Up', pushed her hair out of her eyes and looked up at the building.

From the outside, as long as you were willing to ignore the fact that the front door had been ripped off it's hinges, the building looked like any other. No-one appeared to have hurled themselves out of the windows in horror, nothing appeared to be burning and there was no obvious sign of a hostage situation inside. She raised a hand briefly to the collar at her throat, a brief, unconscious gesture, asking for the strength and bravery of the long-dead Samiel Dayne to keep her safe.

She stepped over the remains of the door, glass crunching beneath her feet as she moved cautiously into the building.

"Dan?"

"Where /are/ you?"

"I just got here. Where's the meeting room?"

"Third floor."

"How many people are in there?"

"...3 in here. 3..no, 4 others got dragged out."

"Do you know where they went?"

"No."

Ness nodded, pressing herself against the wall and peering around a corner. A Deathblossom carried out a slow patrol of the reception area, the sound of bark rubbing against more bark making her teeth itch. Her head snapped up at the sound of someone screaming for help, tearing into the reception area and stopping short in the path of the Deathblossom.

"Shit.." She muttered, watching as the creature drew it's hand back, the woman frozen in terror. "Move, dammit..."

The woman did not.

In slow motion, the creature's huge 'hand' started to swing.

Ness barrelled through the reception area, air screaming around her as she cut through it like a knife. She pelted into the woman at full speed, knocking her out of the way, her shoulder driving into the woman's midsection, carrying her a few feet through the air before they crashed into the carpet. Ness rolled, instinctively. The woman did not, getting to her feet in slow confusion.

"You ok?"

"Vanessa?" She barely heard Dan in her ear, concentrating solely on the woman, who simply looked at her and scrambled backwards in horror.

Whatever. Ness's head snapped around as the Deathblossom flung a handful of spikes in her direction, thunking into the carpet at her feet. She dodged them easily, whirling around and flinging a handful of finger-bone shivs, equally sharp, but far more toxic than anything the Devouring Earth had to offer. Her own blood streaked her hands, the exit wounds already sealing themselves before the shards had found their mark, ripping through the creature's knees and embedding in it's feet and legs.

The thing gave a howl of pain, lashing out wildly. A massive hand swiped at her, close enough that she could feel the air movement in it's wake. Steeling herself, she leapt, grabbing onto the hand and half running, half flying up the things arm, hanging onto it's shoulder. Ness Weekes - now firmly the Vandellia that the papers wrote about - extended a bone from one hand, stabbing it into the creature to secure herself. There was another roar, ancient and primal, it's other hand reaching around for her, even as she brought her other hand back. Skin ripped open audibly as a bone nearly two feet long extended from her knuckles, sharp and deadly, stained with blood and toxin.

Vandellia hissed between her teeth and plunged the lance through the creatures neck. It gave a roar of rage, knees buckling as it fell forwards, wood snapping and screaming, vines popping and tearing. She shifted her balance, almost casually as the thing finally came to a stop on the floor. There was a moments silence as she retracted the bone lance, almost casually tossing her hair out of her face and looked over the petrified office worker.

"Hey. Are. You. OK?" She climbed off the fallen creature and tried not to think of Autumn back home.

The woman took a moment, looking from the Devouring Earth to the blue-haired girl in front of her and after brief consideration, nodded.

"Where are the others?"

"U-upstairs."

"Any idea how many of these things there are?"

The woman shook her head. "I..don't know. A lot."

"Anyone hurt?"

"I don't think so. I didn't see.."

Vandellia nodded, then tilted her head towards the exit. "Might want to get out of here."

The woman nodded, rubbing her eyes with a hand that shook. Her resolve lasted for all of a second before she belted for the door.

"Vanessa?!"

Ness blinked and poked her finger into her ear.

"Daniel."

"What just happened?"

"Welcoming committee."

There was a noise behind her. Ness turned to see a small army of Bedrock coming towards her, rock sliding over rock as they moved, towards her. A small chunk of office shattered at her feet, stone shrapnel stinging her flesh. Vandellia tossed her hair, altered her stance imperceptibly and pushed a bone armoury out through her skin. Less than a second had passed yet her entire body was serrated. Her collarbone sprouted beyond her body to form twin spikes. Her pelvic bones mutated as well, pushing smaller, jagged bones along the ridges of her hips.

"Are you ok?"

Both femurs had split and sprouted. Half of the bone still served the function of supporting her body weight while the other half came out of the sides of her thighs at a thirty degree angle, nearly touching her hands while they laid at an uneasy rest. If needed, she could pull these bones quickly, and since they were the heaviest bones in the human body, they would make formidable weapons.

And thanks to S.E.R.A.P.H, she wouldn't need to fight through the crippling pain of six inch diameter wounds pulling them would cause.

Her kneecaps were covered in bone, giving her natural pads. Her ankles and heels were spiked with sharp bones, very useful in fighting. Her arms, resting lightly at her sides, bore its mutantcy only at the elbows, where Vandellia could rip whatever bones she needed. Her wrists, however, were covered in a thick bracelet of smooth bone. Small slivers of exposed bone flecked her entire body, like a spray of freckles.

The Devouring Earth came to a shuddering, indecisive halt. One of them swatting at the air before turning on it's heel and running.

"Of course."

With a faint smile on her face, Vandellia exploded into action.

Daniel pushed his shoulder blades up against a wall that was going nowhere and tried again.

"What do you want?"

The rock in front of him regarded him for a few moments, and smashed a slate hand into it's chest again.

"Hamidon!"

"Where did you take the others?"

"For Hamidon!"

"Hamidon did...something?"

"Hamidon!"

He sighed, ran a hand carefully through his hair and tried to ignore the soft weeping of Dana Pressman, the Managing Director of All Made Up, currently curled up amongst the remains of the expensive glass table. Less than an hour ago they'd been sat there, discussing business and now...

Something huge and Crystalline stood with infinite patience over her crumpled form. To his right, Shyam Acharya was sat frozen in his chair, eyes wide and terrified. What he could only describe as a Mushroom occasionally traced fingers over the neck of the Asian Chief Information Officer, giving low, twisted chuckles as the man squirmed and whimpered in terror.

The creatures were huge. He was at groin level with the animated stone standing in front of him, it'd destroyed the table with barely a second glance, it's hands punching holes in the steel enforced walls with hardly any effort.

He thought of Vanessa, 18 years old, slight and uncertain with a pang of fear and guilt.

He'd promised Samiel on a number of occasions that he would look out for her, and while he'd had doubts in handing the company over to the teenager his friend had been so protective of, he'd followed the wishes of his friend to the letter and hoped that the football-star-turned-businessman-turned-Superhero had been right about her.

Assuming, of course, that he hadn't got her killed already.

But the girl had a security level of 44. Even if she'd had to dig out her registration card and show it to him as proof of this. She'd told him of going toe-to-toe with Neuron, Baphomet and Nosferatu, taking out entire battalions of Malta soldiers and helping the Longbow defend against the imminent threat of Lord Recluse.

Brightness exploded against his vision, the world tilting madly beneath him and for a moment he had no idea what had happened. It wasn't until his nerve endings caught up with things that he felt the pain, the carpet rushing up to meet him, that he realised the Walking Rock had given up hitting it's own chest and started hitting him instead.

Dana gave a shriek of terror and renewed her campaign of whimpering. He concentrated on the noise, knowing that as long as he could hear it, he was alive and conscious. Red spots bloomed in his vision and he forced them away, the ceiling sliding back into focus.

Something cold and hard closed around his neck, dragging him up and slamming him against the wall. Almost instantaneously something blurred past his vision, impaling the Rock's arm and quivering there.

There was a brief moment of confusion before all hell was let loose.

The Rock turned with a roar of rage, dropping him, forgotten. He saw a hand drag Dana to her feet and yanked unceremoniously through the doorway, barking instructions to say out. The Mushroom fell instantly, something sharp sticking out of what could charitably be called it's head.

Shaking, barely able to focus he saw a figure bolt into the room, barely coming up to the knee of the Crystal figure. Watched in amazement as the thing paused, raising a hand protectively to it's face.

"Hamidon?" The voice was like nails being scraped down a chalkboard.

"Hardly."

/That/ voice he recognised. He forced his eyes to focus as his 18 year old boss stood in front of him, fingers curled around what could only be bones, streaked with blood and a green liquid he'd rather not be asked to identify. She was dressed in maroon leathers, a spiked, tribal design similar to the markings on Anom's skin barely visible on her thighs. The leather had been shredded, hanging in tatters around her.

Monster and girl faced each other down. Her eyes, usually skittering uncertainly around a room or looking towards him, Anom or Cale for support, directly on the creatures.

The Devouring Earth blinked first.

In that moment, she launched herself at it, white flashing as she ducked between the things legs, slashing once, twice and spinning, even as it was driven to it's knees. The Crystal turned, awkwardly to face her but the girl dug one foot firmly into the ground, spun sharply and planted a spiked heel firmly in the things eye. Before it'd had a chance to react, she somersaulted, almost casually - a move even Daniel recognised as Samiel's - and dragged two bone blades across it's blinded form.

The Crystal remained as it was for a split second, before it slowly split into 4 sections, hit the ruined carpet and shattered.

Vandellia's eyes flickered briefly over Daniel, then to the Rock towering over him.

The Rock moved towards her, moving in a slow backhand that picked her up and tossed her backwards, into the wall.

Except it didn't.

He /heard/ the hit connect. Saw her reel with the force of the blow. Saw her /not/ tossed backwards, but spin with the force of the attack, whirling around, pulling something white and jagged from her hip and slide it into the space between stone plating. Saw her t-w-i-s-t the bone. Saw the cracks racing up the creatures stomach and chest, spreading like ripples across it's shoulders.

She spun on her heel again, planting a kick into the bone still embedded in the creature, driving it deeper inside.

And suddenly, the Rock was a pile of gravel on the floor at her feet.

Vandellia moved towards him, offering a hand and pulling him to his feet. A bruise on her cheek faded from red, to purple, to blue, to yellow before he'd stood up.

"Are you ok?"

"Vanessa?"

She nodded, taking a step backwards to avoid covering him in the blood and green that marked her skin. There was a lot of blood. A lot of green, her clothing apparently staying on by willpower alone, but her skin was smooth and undamaged.

"Dan? You ok?"

"/Vanessa/?"

She waved a blood-soaked, wrapped hand carefully in front of his eyes. "Maybe you should sit down for a minute?"

"I...yeah." He slid slowly down the wall. "Where are the others?"

"Outside. H.C'll look after them."

"Anyone hurt?"

"Some guy's got a broken arm. Nothing exciting. Gimme a couple of secs and I can help you heal that head injury."

He touched a finger to it, and winced.

"/Vanessa/?!"

"...stop saying that! It's not /that/ surprising."

He raised a hand to her shoulder for a moment, and poked, as if to make sure it was really her.

"OK. That's it." She poked a finger into her ear. "I need a Medic, or something. This guy took one hit to the head too many."

"Vanessa."

She rolled her eyes, turning at a soft, apologetic noise behind her, raising a bone dagger.

Dana Pressman flinched, sliding down the doorframe, her carefully applied makeup running in big, black streaks down her face. "...w-who are you?"

Ever the professional, Dan pushed himself off the floor and swayed slightly. "Dana, this is Van-"

"-essa Weekes." Ness wiped her hand on her leathers and offered it to the woman. "Joint C.E.O of S.D.I Ltd." There was a pause and she flashed a smile, the white of her teeth bright against the red-brown smears of blood on her face. "Um. I'm..here to..personally tell you that we're delighted to accept your quote for..."

"The Training Room." Dan supplied, thickly.

"...a brand new Training Room. When can your people start work?"