Chapter 5

Mark was sweating. He hadn't anticipated Cronus' skill with a ping pong paddle. They had been playing for hours, but no matter how hard he tried, the Colonel always seemed to slip shots past him, leaving the Eagle panting and running for the other side of the table.

"I thought you'd actually offer me some competition… boy…" Cronus sneered. "Instead I find a pathetic, sniveling excuse for a man…"

"Insults aren't my bag, man." Mark replied through gritted teeth. It was taking all of his concentration to keep track of that little white ball.

Cronus smashed his paddle downward one last time, his shot bypassing the table and hitting the wall.

Mark was amazed. It was the first shot the Colonel had missed all night.

"I really thought you might be worthy of my challenge." Cronus looked down his nose. "I expected much better from… the Eagle."

Mark gasped. His cover was blown!

Quickly, he looked around for an exit. Glancing at the wall, he noticed that the spot where Cronus' ball had hit contained a large red button.

The alarm had been triggered.

Mark launched himself at the Colonel's head with both feet. Number Two dodged the maneuver easily and grabbed the Eagle's ankles, twisting them until Mark fell, bruised, upon the floor. Cronus threw himself on top of his opponent, throwing punch after punch.

Just then the door opened and Frau Mala entered.

"Vat haf ve here?" she sneered. "A little Eagle, so easily kaptured…"

Mark spat in her face. It was not an easy task, given that he was pinned on the floor underneath the Colonel.

"Let him go, Number Two…" ordered Mala. "I haf somezink far more interestink for zis skum!" She placed a sharp kick into Mark's ribs as Cronus got up.

A hidden opening appeared in the opposite wall, and Mark found himself quickly ejected into the alleyway next to the hotel. He slowly pulled himself to his feet, only to hear Frau Mala laughing at him.

"Enjoy my girls, Mister Eagle." she cried, "Zey will be zee last birds you ever see!"

He looked toward the sound of her voice only to see a car containing Cronus and Mala speeding away into the night.

Great. His cover was blown and they were getting away. He transmuted to Birdstyle, preparing to follow his quarry.

Just then he heard footsteps. He looked over to see a gorgeous blonde woman in a beehive hairdo and hot pink catsuit approaching him from behind. He whirled to face her.

"Want to have a little fun?" she purred.

"Sorry…" replied Mark, turning to go, "I'm a married man."

He looked back at her, only to see that the woman had not ceased in her advance.

"I'm sorry." he repeated, "I'm not interested…" His voice trailed off as he saw four more identical women approaching behind the first.

The woman in front paused only a couple of feet from him, her companions right behind her.

"I'm sorry." she said, mocking his own words, "You don't have a choice."

Two small, metallic tubes emerged from each girl's breasts and began emitting clouds of pink gas.

The Eagle backflipped out of range of the gas, then flew up the side of the building, leaping from window ledge to window ledge.

The girls began to climb the wall beneath him. Damn, they were fast!

Mark desperately looked for a way into the building. Unfortunately this was a luxury hotel in the middle of the desert. Air conditioning was expensive, and all of the windows were hermetically sealed. And even the fancy suites didn't have balconies.

Then the Eagle spotted what he was looking for. About fifteen stories above him there was a broken window.

Quickly, he made his way up the outside wall of the hotel, until he had reached the window. Slipping inside, he looked down.

The girls were only three stories below him, and closing in fast.

With their unnatural speed, not to mention the gas weapon in their chests, he doubted that they were human. More likely they were some kind of robots. What a drag.

Glancing around the room, he saw a few subtle indications that it had recently been searched. No wonder the window was broken.

Moving swiftly to the door, Mark was about to open it when he heard muffled voices from the hallway on the other side.

"It's been a few hours, and still, no sign of them!"

"It looks like Groovy Force got away! Damn! How do they always slip through our grasp?"

Mark smiled to himself. At least he knew who had been searching this room.

"All the same, we'd better remain alert." the voices continued.

"Yeah, we don't want Frau Mala to think we're not doing our jobs! Who knows when she may come back?"

At least Mark knew that Frau Mala wasn't coming back. But it appeared that his departure from this room wouldn't go unnoticed either.

Just as he was formulating a plan to subdue the guards, one of the girls climbed in the window.

"We just want to play…" she purred, crooking a long finger topped with a blood-red nail in a 'come hither' motion.

"And what if I want to play my game?" smirked the Eagle.

"We're ready…" whispered the woman seductively. Her companions had all climbed in through the window and were now surrounding Mark. One of them reached for a digital audio player on a nearby table and turned it on. The room was filled with the soft sounds of Barry White.

"We thought… that before we killed you…" the first woman said in a husky voice, "we could all get to know each other a little better." She walked across the room with an enticing gait, and leaned in under the Eagle's visor, searching for his mouth with hers.

Mark gritted his teeth. This could not be happening.

Then an idea flashed through his mind. He could fight fire with fire.

Gently pushing the girl away, he took off his helmet and began to sway seductively to the music. He shook out his long, dark hair.

"Oooh…" murmured the girls appreciatively. They were spellbound.

He still had some swinger left in him. Even if he normally only did this for Jun. He closed his conscious mind, and pretended that she was his only audience.

He de-transmuted in a flash of light, timed perfectly to the romantic tune in the background. Glancing flirtatiously at the girls, he slid his jacket off of his arms.

"Aaaaaahhhh…" sounds of appreciation echoed around the room. Bright electric sparks flew from two of the girls' ears. The remaining three reached out to touch Mark, as if they were groupies, and he was a rock star.

He was a rock star. He twirled, slithered and swayed, oozing sex from every pore, letting the spirit of Barry White take over his movements. Soon his frilly white shirt had been discarded, and then his pants, and soon he was wearing nothing but his Speed Racer Underoos.

He licked his finger, then touched it seductively to his nipple. The girls swooned at his feet.

As he danced, one by one the girls' heads exploded in a shower of sparks and smoke, until only their leader was left. Shaking her head, she suddenly broke out of Mark's spell and saw what had become of her companions.

"No…" she whispered. "We cannot fail…"

Mark knew he had to act fast. He leaned over and gently pressed his lips to those of the robot girl. Her eyes rolled back into her head and smoking wires popped out of her hair.

But he was a little too late. The pink gas she had emitted at the last second overcame him, and the Eagle slumped to the floor, surrounded by the mechanical remnants of his would-be attackers.