Hail stood in a secluded area, an almost open plain of verdant grass, decorated with small hills that sprouted up from the ground and stood as tall as they could, as though lording over this small patch of area, their personal and humble kingdom. It was on one of those hills that he stood still, his hands on his hips as his crimson eyes scanned the area around him, feeling the gentle breeze push past him and into the air around.

His first form was probably the best look he could maintain on this planet. The height wasn’t threatening, and the lower power meant that he didn’t have to worry about frightening off any earthlings or attracting the type that sought a ‘challenge’ by bashing their heads against something they thought had plenty of strength to satisfy them. Those types were very annoying. His bio-armour was joined by pointed shoulder pads, and as opposed to his first form, black spikes stuck out from the sides of his crown, where the bio-armour formed to protect the rest of his head.

It wasn’t long now since he’d arrived, and he was mulling over his options. It was probably better to lay low and not actually go and introduce himself to whoever was in charge of this planet like a diplomat really would; better that he acted as a more eccentric type who liked to get to know the locals and gather knowledge. After all, that way he could gather information on the goings-on of this planet without attracting attention and having what he was doing scrutinised. The last thing he needed was to become an attraction for Earthling nobility.

He began walking through the grass, watching it curiously as it adapted to his movements and didn’t break under his stride, but flexibly adjusted to his boots and continued on after he had left. The flora was a good starting point, he supposed, but there was so much more to cover. His hand came up to his chin, rubbing at it. There were four continents on this planet, with him having just recently landed in the east. It seemed like it was the most remote; he was unlikely to encounter people unless he wished to, but perhaps that was for the best. After all, the flora would-

Hail instinctively leaned back as something swiped for him, his expression and mood unchanging as air shot past him, feeling the cold breeze of air being cut by the sheer speed of an attack. His eyes followed the movement, which to most other creatures, must have seemed a blur. It didn’t move and attack like a sapient being, though. This was no assassin, that he was sure of. He inspected the creature as it whipped around, coming straight towards him now. It stood bipedal, with dark orange skin, viciously sharp teeth and glowing green eyes. On its head, blue spines that almost looked like a mohawk, extending down the predator’s back.

The animal attacked again, swiping scything claws at Hail’s face. Once again, he simply leaned back, swaying his upper body with surprising grace to avoid the attack. It came again, now attacking in a rush as the Changeling’s speed kicked up another gear, moving fast enough that he was invisible to the common eye now, looking more as though the predator was attacking afterimages that simply disappeared in response to its attacks.

Hail’s eyes widened in fascination, and with how simply pleased he was. What a wonderful creature. He had no idea that on Earth, such apex predators existed, and they were defeated? Hunted, or avoided? By Earthlings? So much of what was reported was that they were a waste of time, weak beings with little to offer their own planet, much less the rest of the galaxy. Their ingenuity was given credit, but he didn’t hear much good about them. How could he have missed this? If a creature like this, which could do just fine on some parts of Frost, was something earthlings could deal with, perhaps with work and a fine plan, then there was certainly a lot to learn, and plenty to gain from them.

His hands had remained behind his back for the entirety of this assault, and they remained there once it finally stopped. The lizard-like beast looked at him in confusion and rage. It was then that Hail began wondering exactly what made it tick. Why had it chosen to attack him? Did it think he was infringing upon its territory? Perhaps it mistook him for some sort of prey. He supposed that there were forms of life on many planets that resembled aliens from other worlds, so the same could be said of Earth. It was entirely possible that it thought he was simply an earthling, with the diversity of their appearances. In truth, it didn’t really matter. This was a great animal, but he couldn’t take the time to understand its hunting habits at the moment. There was much to do.

The creature came rushing forward again, but this time, there was no chance for it to swipe. Instead, its eyes widened in shock and pain as it stood there, stuck. Hail’s hand pointed outwards, his fingers outstretched but held together in a poking strike, having struck the animal right in the neck. There were a few more moments of life in its eyes, which only made him admire the beast more, before finally, its eyes rolled back, and the great creature collapsed into the green grass in front of him. That soft breeze blew over once again, like nothing had even happened.