The three companions journeyed until they came to a sheer cliff face. Because going around the cliff would take far too long, they had no choice but to scale it. Saru, being the most agile, lead the way, as sure footed as though he had lived on the mountain all his life. Omi was close behind him. Xiong however, was less at ease at great heights than on the ground, nevertheless, he was climbing slowly but surely. As they neared the summit, a harsh voice rang out, seemingly coming from every direction at once.

"Who dares defile the mountain of Taka, master of the sky? More vile treasure hunters, coming to pillage and plunder? Well I tire of your kind!"

Without further warning, a winged figure burst out from behind an outcrop, giving an almighty shriek. Saru had been caught unawares and losing his balance, began to plummet towards the ground. Acting quickly, Xiong reached out and caught Saru by the tail, causing the monkey-boy to screech in pain. By doing this, the great bear's grip loosened and he began to slide downwards. Omi released the belt around his waist, letting Kanojo-Cho drop and lowered one end to Xiong, who wrapped it around his wrist. The dangling Saru managed to grab the Dragon Fang sword before it fell out of reach. Despite the desperation of the situation, Omi couldn't help but notice their quarry. A first glance told him that they were dealing with a large bird. Upon further inspection though, he realized that it was a person, wearing a bird's head mask and a white feathered robe. The wings did not move, suggesting that the person was using a what looked like a giant kite, meaning that instead of actually flying, the person was riding air currents. The person who now had them at a disadvantage. Omi braced himself as the bird-man swooped down towards them and plucked Saru from Xiong's grasp, before 'flying' up to the top of the cliff, where they landed on the solid ground. With the extra weight gone, Omi and Xiong managed to pull themselves up to the top of the cliff. The man stared at the group as they lay on the grass, catching their breath. Noticing this, Omi leapt to his feet, ready to fight again if necessary. But the winged-one held out both hands in a gesture that he meant them no harm. Relieved, Omi slumped back down on the ground. Saru's rescuer reached up and removed the bird mask, revealing the face of a young woman.

"You're a girl?" asked the Monkey-Lord, dumbstruck.

"Yes, and what of it? I saved you didn't I" she replied sharply. She turned to Omi and Xiong and her tone lightened. "Forgive me for attacking you, but I thought that you were thieves. But when I saw you risking your lives for each other, I knew you must be good people."

"Your apology is accepted. I am Momo-Omi-Taro, and my companions are Xiong the Great Bear and Saru- the Monkey Lord."

"I am Taka- the Hawk- master of the skies and keeper of the surrounding valley. Just as my father was before me."

Xiong, who was inspecting her 'wings' was impressed by the design. "Gee missy, you sure had me fooled back there. I thought we were being attacked by a giant bird."

"That's the whole idea. These cliffs are home to many big birds of prey, who build their nests here to ensure the safe arrival of their young. Many people would like to capture the birds, so I use my glider to allow me to attack them from above," replied Taka. "Now tell me Peach-Headed one, why are you here?

"We're just passing through, on our journey north. I'm going to vanquish a powerful demon and destroy his army of metal horrors."

Taka's brow creased in thought. "Hmm….I had heard rumors of such a thing. If what you say is true, then these creatures must be stopped. The fate of my valley depends on it."

"Then will you come with us?"

Taka nodded and replaced her mask.

"Then together we shall go to the island and we shall be victorious," he said. They shared the last of his millet cakes before continuing their quest.

***

When the group arrived at the sea side , they found it difficult to hire a fishing boat. The villagers believed that the island out in the ocean was haunted and did not want to risk losing their boats forever. Eventually they managed to persuade one fisherman to sell them his boat, using money that Taka had brought with her.

However, only minutes after they had set out in the boat, the wind died down. The ocean was as still as a pond. The island was still a long way off, and they had no paddles. There was nothing else to do but wait for the wind to pick up again.

Saru was relaxing and enjoying the sun's warmth as he lay across the bough. He let his tail dangle in the water, drifting alongside the boat. Suddenly the water bubbled and boiled, and up rose a gigantic seaweed covered being, looking like a cross between a person and a fish.

"Kappa!" screeched Saru, hanging on for dear life.

It grabbed the side of the boat and begin to rock it violently back and forth. Omi and Taka clung to the mast as Xiong tried to keep his footing long enough to fight off the water demon. Then another creature- this one smaller than the first rose up on the other side.

"Hey, cut that out!" yelled the second monster. Somewhat reluctantly, the first creature let go.

"Sorry about that. My brother tends to get very worked up over little things. You wouldn't happen to be carrying any food on that boat of yours are you?"

Omi, Taka and Xiong shook their heads. Saru looked sheepish. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a squashed millet cake. "I was saving it for later."

The second monster nodded knowingly. "That'll be it then. He loves his fish and all, but wave a little bit of human food within fifty feet of him and he'll go crazy. My name is Brian by the way, and that's Wally. "

The monkey shrugged and tossed the cake to the bigger monster, who caught it in his mouth and swallowed it whole, licking it's lips.

"I don't suppose you gentlemen would mind giving us a little push over to the island over there by any chance?" asked Taka after introductions had been made.

Brian scratched his head scales thoughtfully. "Well, I suppose we could give you a good nudge to get you going. Can't refuse a nice little lady like yourself now can we?" Brian went over to his brother and whispered something to him. Wally nodded his head enthusiastically.

"It's settled then. Fasten your seatbelts ladies and gentle men, here we go!"

"What's a seatbelt?" asked Omi as the Kappa began pushing the boat.

***

With the Kappa brothers' help, the travelers reached the island in no time. As Brian and Wally could not leave the water, they parted ways. It wasn't hard to find the stone-wall fortress. Climbing a hill that overshadowed the fortress, Omi, Xiong and Saru waited behind as Taka used her glider to survey their surroundings from above. When she came back, she reported all that she had seen.

"Omi was right. There are many metal monsters down there. They're big round and have a single glowing red eye, that must be their weak point. They don't look too tough. I haven't seen the leader yet though."

"What about entrances?" asked Omi.

"There is but one gate. It is gigantic and I fear even Xiong with his great strength could not open it."

Omi thought for a while. "Alright, I have a plan. We'll wait until it is darker before we strike. Taka and Saru, you can fly and climb over the walls. Find a way to open the gates. Xiong and I will be waiting. We strike hard and fast, take no prisoners, but leave the general to me." The others nodded their agreement.

They didn't have long to wait, and their cause was helped when a fog descended over the island.

Moving silently, Saru climbed the wall as Taka watched from overhead, her powerful eyes piercing through the fog. As the monkey looked for a gate-tower, Taka prepared her diversion. Aiming for the red lights, glowing in the fog, she began dropping small gourds filled with a special black powder she had procured from foreign merchants. The gourds exploded on impact, briefly lighting up the surroundings in a bright flash. The iron soldiers stumbled around in confusion, looking for the source of the attack.

Saru meanwhile had managed to open the gate. As soon as it was open wide enough, Xiong and Omi rushed inside, giving terrifying war cries. Kanojo-Cho was slashing in all directions as Xiong smashed the machines with his bare hands. Saru joined the battle, leaping over his opponents and driving his staff into their eyes. Taka had run out of gourds and flew down to deliver the occasional kick before soaring back up and out of reach.

Seeing that his friend were looking after themselves, Omi left to find the demon general. It wasn't hard. All he had to do was look for the fanciest chamber, spoils of previous plundering no doubt. Kicking down the gilded door, Omi stormed into the room.

"Show yourself demon!"

A head popped out from behind a curtain. The general was an unimpressive sight. He looked like a normal person, if not for his exceedingly pale skin and his unnatural shade of fiery red hair. And the two large horns on top of his head. He looked surprised that Omi had found him.

"Hey? Who are you calling demon, baldy? I'm just as human as you are. And you know you guys shouldn't keep smashing my robots. It's not nice!"

"I am Momo-Omi Taro, and I have come to vanquish you."

"Well….uh…I'm Jack Spicer….and…uh…"

Omi refused to be swayed to it's deception and held dragon-fang at the ready.

"Oh, you wanna fight me now huh? Alright then."

The demon General walked over to the wall and pulled down a large broad-sword, which he swung awkwardly. Cunning as the demon may have been, it was no swordsman. With a wild and oddly high-pitched scream, it charged. Omi rushed over to meet it. Kanojo-cho flashed past it and with a crackle of energy, the demon's horns fell off.

"Augh! My antenna!" cried the Jack, dropping the sword and clutching at it's head. "Now how am I supposed to control the Jack-bots?"

"It appears as though I have taken your power away. My task is complete," said Omi, sheathing his sword.

But jack wasn't quite finished yet. He swung a fist at Omi, who blocked it with ease and retaliated with a snap-kick to the chest. Putting the failed general in an arm-lock, he marched it out to the battle field, where Saru was excited to see him.

"Hey Omi, you did it! The monsters just froze and fell over! We won!" he exclaimed.

"What do we do with him?" asked Xiong. "Maybe we should leave him hanging down a cliff by his legs?"

"Or we could feed him to the water kappa," suggested Saru helpfully. Omi shook his head.

"No, we will hand him over to the villagers. I think they will be eager to get their hands on him after all he has done to them."

Jack appeared to grow even paler at the mention of these things. They ignored his pleas as they bound his hands and carried him back to the boat.

Omi was right about the villagers, they were very keen to have Jack in their grasp. As they walked off, he called out after them.

"I'll get you….you haven't heard the last of Jack Spicer….wait…what are yo-….no ….not my hair! Arrrrrrrggghhhh!"

The four friends chuckled to themselves as they set off again. They would have many more adventures, Saru the Monkey Lord, Taka the Hawk , Xiong the Great Bear, and Momo-Omi- Taro- the Peach-Headed- Warrior Boy.