Sandstone

Alexandra Flint was raised alone by an alcoholic father after her mother’s death. Sorrow and alcohol led to depression and anger, all of which Alex’s father directed at his daughter in the form of physical and emotional abuse. He openly and loudly blamed Alexandra for their lot in life, habitually reinforcing that she was the reason for everything wrong with their lives, including her father’s low-paying job and their family’s tenement apartment in Freedom City's Lincoln neighborhood. Alexandra took her father’s rants to heart and grew up burdened by the belief that she was somehow at fault simply for being born.
As a result, Alex learned she had to be tough to make her way in the world. Not only was she forced to endure her father’s brutality, but also the difficulties of growing up in a poor, crime-ridden community. After struggling her way through school, Alexandra decided the best things she could do for herself were to get out of Lincoln and, more importantly, away from her father. Upon graduating high school, Alexandra enlisted in the Army. When she boarded the bus bound for basic training, Alexandra was alone, just as she knew she would be for some time to come.
Military service was exactly the right environment for Alexandra Flint. She soared through basic training, receiving high marks from her trainers in almost every area, but most notably in small unit tactics. Upon completion of basic training, Alex was deployed to the Middle East.
During her tour, while Alexandra’s unit was engaged in reconnaissance deep in the desert, she became separated from her comrades by a sudden sandstorm. Blind and unable to communicate with her unit, Alex stumbled upon the remains of an ancient temple unearthed by the sirocco. While attempting to take shelter, she discovered a glittering, dusky gemstone set into one of the temple walls. Unable to read the inscriptions surrounding it, Alexandra couldn’t help but examine the beautiful jewel. Just as she touched the stone, the sandstorm outside exploded with newfound fury, sweeping through the temple. The sand of the desert tempest swept through Alex as well, moving through her very soul and carrying her away on the hot desert winds. When it passed, Alexandra Flint was nowhere to be found.
But Alexandra Flint wasn’t gone. What remained of her still retained a memory of her former body and, over the course of several weeks, Alex’s physical shape began to reform itself, albeit drastically changed. Alex had become one with the sand and stone of the desert. Once she had managed to reform her body, she began to experiment with her newfound abilities and was pleased with what she found. She was tougher and stronger than she had ever been, and couldn’t have been happier. Alex quickly realized she now had opportunities she never could’ve dreamed of before. After several weeks of travel and several violent encounters with military forces, Alex eventually found her way out of the desert and back to civilization. From there, it was no trouble to stow away on an American freighter and find her way back to the United States.
Once back in Freedom City, Alex set out to make her fortune. Using her former neighborhood connections, she was able to contact August Roman and, through him, find work as hired muscle for a variety of criminal and underworld enterprises, notably Dr. Sin and the Power-House. Roman was also overjoyed to have such a talented new addition to the Circuit Maximus. Sandstone became one of the most popular and successful competitors in the fighting ring. She formed a good relationship with Saturnalia Roman, giving her a valuable connection that has served her well.
Alex Flint has only returned to see her father once since becoming Sandstone. The meeting wasn’t at all pleasant for Mr. Flint, who still has several scars and a noticeable limp.

Physical Description

Special abilities

Sandstone’s body is composed of magically animated sand, which she can mold and reform at will. In her sand form, she is amorphous, able to flow through small openings, stretch out her limbs and body, or flatten and flow out into a wide pool of sand covering a surface, slithering along the ground. She can strike with the force of a sandblaster, firing a cone-shaped or omnidirectional burst, or striking with enlarged sandy fists.
Her sand form is highly resistant to harm: Bullets and fists alike just displace some of the sand, passing harmlessly through her. Energy and area damage is much more effective.
Sandstone can also concentrate and harden her sandy body into one of solid stone, which remains animate. It takes her a moment’s concentration to shift between forms. Her stone form is more dense and gives her great physical strength, as well as resistance to harm, but it lacks the versatility of her sand shape.
In either form, Sandstone is essentially immune to the environmental needs of a living creature: she does not breathe or need to eat or sleep, and can handle any extreme of temperature found on Earth with no difficulty.
It’s unknown if Sandstone could survive the total dispersal of her physical form, or if she would reform again, given time. She’s certainly in no hurry to test the idea either way.

Mental characteristics

Intellectual Characteristics

Sandstone is a study in contrasts. While she’s not a killer and does not work as an assassin, she is a violent and, unfortunately, highly trained and skilled thug, making her a dangerous opponent.
Sandstone loves a good brawl and is happy to “bring the pain” to her opponents, but she generally leaves them alive, even encouraging them to stay down when she thinks they’ve had enough.
Sandstone has a soft spot for kids, and will not take on jobs that directly threaten children. She has even gone out of her way to help save them, if they are endangered, and avoids work that could harm kids including working with drug traffickers.
While she revels in her powers, Sandstone would also like to find a way to switch to her human form, as she misses some of the pleasures afforded by a human body.