A figure dashed from building to building in deserted streets. Though the city seemed empty, they knew better than that. The alarm had probably already gone out that they were here. It was just a matter of finding them, or else escaping before being found.

Yes, that inescapable monster to the citizens of Angel Grove was already here.

That the place even still existed was preposterous to them. The hubris of it! That’s why they were here. They needed to find out more about this place. They needed to find the one who would dare create and live in a city such as this. And once they found that being, they needed to make sure it would never happen again, and destroy the city utterly.

But before they could do any of that, they needed to get the info and then get out with it alive. Each week another agent was sent and each week they were slayed. But this time would be different. They were better than the others. Faster. Stronger. More Subtle in their ways. No mere man could hope to compete with Eurytion!

“Then it’s a good thing I’m no mere man!”

Eurytion’s eyes dashed around wildly. Where had the voice come from!? Were they discovered? Despite the boast, they were sure they could silence a single observer,. However, even they might struggle if more guardians were called.

SOAR! S.S.S. Eagle!

A flash of light. The ground shook and Eurytion struggled to stay standing. In a nearby street corner, a massive mechanical Bird, a red eagle, appeared and planted itself beak-first into the pavement.

“This is your threat? A missile? A bird!? You can’t even hit us, much less end us!” Eurytion drew their sword, bathed in fire, and held it in plow form. They were ready to strike the moment a body revealed itself.

Instead, something wholly unexpected happened. The bird began to move and to change.

It’s wings folded up and moved to its back, while its tail split and extended. Its Talons moved up its body and clenched into fists as new legs, longer finished forming out of its tail. Its torso twisted in on itself and its head folded down to form the crest of its new chest. The machine stood tall and seemingly from nowhere a new head dropped out of the sky.

S.S.S. Eagle, Battle Mode!

The new mechanical figure stood more than 4 meters tall. It drew a feather-shape spear. No, a Glaive. The sky momentarily darkened as it posed under a heavenly spotlight, transformation complete.

Eurytion didn’t need to see more. They turned tail and ran.

“Hey, come back here! Don’t you have a romantic soul at all!? You’re supposed to wait until I’m finished transforming!!”

Change, S.S.S. Falcon!

Another robotic bird. No, another mechanical weapon. This one right in front of Eurytion’s escape route. By the time it landed, it had already changed, blue and lean. Fast but not fast enough. Eurytion immediately struck. Their flaming sword easily cut through the machine’s joints. As they past, they severed both arms from the blue robot. No need to see the results. Eurytion immediately resumed their escape. Even knowledge of these machines would do more to serve the cause than any of their predecessors.

Hawk! Owl! Osprey!

3 more flashes of light and 3 more machines surrounded Eurytion. All seemed more heavily armoured than the blue one, and each blocked a potential escape root. Red was fast approaching from behind. It was risky, but there was only one way out now.

Eurytion completely abandoned stealth and took flight. Their feathery wings stretched to the sky as they rushed at a speed far surpassing mortal flight.

It wasn’t fast enough. Of course, the bird robots would be able to follow into the sky. But seemingly only in their avian forms were they fast enough to keep pace. Forms which likely had fewer weapons and weaker armour. A weakness their prey did not share.

In the open sky, it was easy for Eurytion to strike at the pursuers. Their wings were vulnerable and each strike sent them crashing to the ground, if only temporarily. The birds were tenacious indeed and any damage short of amputation was quickly repaired or overcome. Still, the interloper made progress. With each downed machine, Eurytion bought a little more space and a little more time. Before long, they would be able to escape the city. Before long, they would win!

“Not so fast!”

With a blue blur, the Falcon brought a backhanded swing down upon its prey.

“Sorry to break the fun and games, but you know the rules. Play second. Stopping them first.”

The falcon. No, the blue robot. It was in its human form, with both arms intact, and had effortlessly caught Eurytion when it looked like he might escape. How was this even possible?

“You are seriously a mood killer sometimes, you know that Blu?”

“But...it’s not like we were actually going to stop the Angel with just bird mode anyway.”

“Fair enough, Oca. Let’s just finish this.”

SOARING-