Tracey West

by Astro Boy (source)

  “Doctor, in any conflict between positive and negative energy, the negative always prevails,” the president said. “Look at human history. Look at me!”

  “My point exactly,” Elefun muttered.

  Stone grabbed one of the scientists in the room. She held the master controls for the Peacekeeper.

  “Turn this thing on,” he demanded.

  “I won‘t,” the scientist said firmly.

  “I have fifty reporters waiting for me outside!” he fumed. “Turn it on!”

  “You don’t understand the technology,” Dr. Elefun said, wringing his hands.

  “Ha! Technology! Who cares about it?” Stone fumed. “Who understands it? It’s a robot. It’ll do what I say!”

  He grabbed the core with his bare hands and shoved it into the Peacekeeper’s chest. The Peacekeeper came to life, its eyes glowing red.

  “Red Core loaded,” the Peacekeeper reported.

  President Stone smiled, pleased. “You ready to do as you’re told?” he asked. “You ready to rock and roll?”

  “Sir!” the Peacekeeper replied, like a good soldier.

  “Destroy the boy robot and bring back the Blue Core,” President Stone commanded.

  The Peacekeeper didn’t move.

  “What are you, deaf?” Stone asked angrily. “I told you to destroy the boy robot!”

  The Peacekeeper descended on President Stone, absorbing the man into his steel body. The robot’s eyes flashed red with anger. He spoke again—and this time, it was with the distorted, frightening voice of President Stone.

  “Bring back the Blue Core!” he roared.

  The scientists watched in horror. President Stone and the Peacekeeper had melded together. Their president was a terrifying, giant robot!

  “Everybody out. Now!” Dr. Elefun yelled.

  CHAPTER 18

  Outside the Ministry of Science, a small group of reporters sat patiently in folding chairs, waiting for the press conference President Stone had promised. One of the president’s aides walked up to the microphone in front of them.

  “I’m sorry, guys,” he apologized. “I’m getting word that President Stone may be slightly delayed.”

  Suddenly, Peacekeeper Stone smashed through the doorway. The reporters gasped in shock. Their president was a twenty-five-foot-tall monster!

  Stone tapped the microphone. “Is this thing on?”

  Terrified, the reporters screamed and ran, knocking over chairs in their panic.

  “What? What are you doing? Come back!” Stone demanded.

  He stomped after them. Everything he came into contact with was absorbed by his huge body—cars, buildings, billboards, telephone poles—it didn’t matter how large. Stone grew bigger and bigger every minute.

  Eight small aircrafts equipped with missile launchers zoomed down from the sky and advanced on Peacekeeper Stone. His eyes flashed.

  “Let’s rock and roll!”

  Astro flew off, unaware that Peacekeeper Stone was attacking Metro City. He was happy to be alive. His only thought was to try to escape the president’s soldiers.

  As he soared past a cloud, he heard a familiar squawking up ahead. Mr. Squirt and Mr. Squeegee were lazily flying in front of him.

  “This is the life, buddy,” Mr. Squirt said to Mr. Squeegee. “Smooth sailing.”

  Astro zipped past them so fast, they began to somersault in the air.

  “Whoa!” they cried.

  “Sorry, guys,” Astro said, circling back to meet them.

  “Oh no!” said Mr. Squirt. “It’s that crazy kid who tried to mug us.”

  “I didn’t try to mug you and I’m not a kid,” Astro said. “I’m a robot just like you guys. What are you doing all the way out here?”

  “We got tired of the rat race,” Mr. Squirt answered. “We dropped out.”

  “We’re trying to live more natural, you know, like real birds,” Mr. Squeegee added.

  Boom! Boom! Boom! The sound of the explosions in Metro City reached them.

  “What’s that?” Astro asked.

  “New Year’s? The Playoffs? Mother’s Day?” Mr. Squirt guessed. “You know what humans are like.”

  Astro focused his robot vision on the city. He could see the smoke and explosions. This was no celebration. Something was wrong—and he was sure President Stone had something to do with it.

  “We’ve got to do something,” he said.

  “What? About the humans?” Mr. Squirt asked. “We’re robots. It’s not our problem.”

  “Yeah, forget about them,” Mr. Squeegee agreed. “What did they ever do for us?”

  Boom! Boom! Astro frowned as more explosions rocked Metro City.

  “Sorry, guys,” he told the robots. “I’ve got to go help.”

  Astro took off with such immense velocity and force that in seconds he looked just like a burning dot speeding back to Metro City.

  “He’s right,” Mr. Squeegee said. “According to the rules of robotics, we gotta go help.”

  Astro quickly reached Metro City and tried to figure out what was going on. He flew past a digital billboard stating that the downtown area was closed off. He landed below the sign. Whatever the trouble was, it was probably close by.

  A giant shadow loomed over the area. Car alarms started going off like crazy. President Stone’s voice bounced off of the buildings.

  “Come out, come out, wherever you are!” Stone called out.

  Astro realized that President Stone and the Peacekeeper had somehow combined. The robot was as tall as a skyscraper now. It stomped around the corner. It smashed a building with a giant robot hand.

  “Where are you, robot boy?” Peacekeeper Stone bellowed.

  Then Stone spotted Astro. “Oh ... hello.”

  Astro quickly flew off. Peacekeeper Stone stomped after him, destroying cars and buildings as he went.

  Astro’s eyes turned red. A message flashed across his eyes.

  Activate Arm Cannons.

  Astro was confused. He didn’t know that Dr. Tenma had equipped him with some of the best defensive technology available.

  Suddenly, his arms began to change shape. He cried out, surprised. His arms had converted into cannons!

  “Cool!” Astro said.

  Before he could fire ... Bam! Peacekeeper Stone launched a missile at Astro, sending him hurtling through the air.

  Back on the Surface, Cora, Zane, Widget, and Sludge gazed up at Metro City. They could see the smoke and hear the explosions.

  “That has to be Astro,” said Widget.

  “I don’t care if he is a robot. We’ve got to help him,” said Sludge.

  “I hear you,” Zane agreed.

  Behind them, Hamegg was starting up his flying car, the one he used to parade to the battle arena. Cora ran to stop him and the others followed.

  Hamegg frowned when he saw Cora.

  “What do you want, an apology?” he asked.

  “No,” Cora said. “Just the car.”

  “I would love to help you, but—”

  Bam! Zog marched up and yanked Hamegg out of the driver’s seat.

  “Bad egg,” Zog said.

  Cora jumped in the craft and grinned. “Anyone want to go for a ride?”

  From a street near the Ministry of Science, Dr. Tenma and Dr. Elefun watched the battle.

  “He mustn’t get near the Red Core,” Dr. Elefun said nervously.

  “Orrin, get the car,” Dr. Tenma ordered.

  Orrin quickly walked away. They had to help Master Toby!

  Downtown, Astro slammed backward into a building. He recovered quickly, blasting the Peacekeeper with his cannons. The Peacekeeper roared as the blasts hit him, but they didn’t stop him. He loomed over Astro now. He angrily swatted at Astro with his enormous hand.

  The Peacekeeper lifted up his hand, expecting to find Astro underneath. But there was nothing there.

  “Huh?” the Peacekeeper was confused.

  Astro had escaped by drilling underground. He burst up t
hrough the ground behind the Peacekeeper. He flew up and grabbed the robot by one of his big arms. Then he pulled with all of his might.

  Straining and groaning, he flipped the Peacekeeper, slamming him into the ground.

  Astro grinned. He’d done it! The Peacekeeper was out cold.

  But the robot wasn’t down yet. He slowly rose up, absorbing all of the buildings around him. Peacekeeper Stone was beyond huge now.

  “Destroy the boy robot! Must obtain the Blue Core!” Peacekeeper Stone roared.

  Astro fired his cannons at full blast. The Peacekeeper screamed and angrily punched the building next to him. It broke in half.

  But his anger worked against him. The broken building toppled over him. He lay underneath the rubble, completely still.

  People cautiously emerged onto the streets, cheering. It looked like the Peacekeeper was really defeated this time!

  Astro took a bow. “Thank you. Any time you need me.”

  Bam! The Peacekeeper reached out and grabbed Astro in his hand. Astro struggled to escape from the grip. Suddenly, two more hidden weapons came to Astro’s aid. He shot two cannon blasts—from his butt!

  The blasts hit the Peacekeeper. He let go of Astro and fell onto the street. Astro retracted his weapons and shook his head, slightly embarrassed.

  “I’ve got machine guns in my butt? You’ve got to be kidding,” he said.

  The Peacekeeper jumped back to his feet. He uprooted a skyscraper and swung it like a baseball bat.

  Whack! He hit Astro, sending him careening into another skyscraper. Astro fell to the ground like a rock. People ran screaming out of his way.

  “Look out! Run!”

  The earth shook as the Peacekeeper pounded toward Astro.

  “Destroy the boy robot! Obtain the Blue Core!”

  He rose one enormous foot, ready to stomp Astro. Astro was still knocked out cold. He couldn’t move.

  Then suddenly ... whoosh! Cora and the kids zipped up in Hamegg’s hover car. Cora pulled Astro into the car.

  They sped away just as the Peacekeeper’s foot came crashing down.

  CHAPTER 19

  Astro slowly opened his eyes. He was in some kind of flying car. He saw Cora leaning over him. Zane, Widget, and Sludge sat next to her.

  “Astro, are you hurt?” she asked.

  “Yeah,” Astro said, groaning.

  “Where?” Cora asked.

  “Everywhere,” Astro replied. “Hey, who’s driving?”

  The kids all looked at the front seat. Trashcan was at the steering wheel.

  “Aaaaaaaah!” they yelled.

  Peacekeeper Stone stomped after them. He knocked down buildings in his path as easily as if they were a child’s blocks.

  “Trashcan, faster!” Astro urged.

  Zane slipped into the driver’s seat and took the controls from Trashcan. Cora and Astro hugged each other as the Peacekeeper got closer and closer.

  Boom! Boom! Boom!

  Transformers around the city exploded as the power went out. The whole city was silent for a moment. Then, suddenly, all of Metro City violently lurched sideways. The Peacekeeper screamed as he fell over, crashing into the ground.

  Zane was confused. “Why are we going up?” he asked.

  “No, the city’s going down!” Cora yelled.

  Astro realized what was happening. Without power, the technology that kept Metro City magically hovering over the Surface had failed. If he didn’t do something, the city would be destroyed!

  “I have to take care of this,” Astro said. Every inch of him hurt, but he pushed the pain away. He powered his jets and zoomed from the car.

  “Astro, no!” Cora yelled.

  The kids were safe in their hover car. Zane steered them away. Astro flew down past the falling city. He gripped the edge of the city with all his might, trying to keep it from crashing to the surface. He focused every ounce of energy he had.

  People fell out of windows. Cars skidded down the street. Astro pushed harder. He had to straighten things out before anyone fell off!

  “Aaaaaaagh!” Astro groaned.

  He felt himself weakening.

  I can’t hold on anymore! Astro thought.

  Then, just when he was about to collapse, the city leveled out and landed on the Surface. He let go, sighing with relief.

  Up above him, Peacekeeper Stone emerged from the smoking bubble. Down below him, he heard a voice.

  “Oy, ugly!”

  The Peacekeeper looked around.

  “Down here!”

  The voice came from Sparx, who stood next to Robotsky and Mike. Sparx was shaking his fist.

  “We, the Robot Revolutionary Front, demand immediately that you cease oppressing our comrade, Astro,” Sparx said. “And we would like to remind you that while the laws of robotics state that we are unable to harm a human, there is nothing to say we can’t do some serious damage to a monster. Right, comrades?”

  There was no reply. Sparx turned around and saw Robotsky and Mike running away, terrified.

  “This isn’t how we voted!” Sparx called after them.

  “Where are you, robot boy?” Peacekeeper Stone shouted. “I know you’re still alive.”

  Astro flew up behind him, holding a giant metal girder.

  Peacekeeper Stone continued, “You can’t hide from—”

  Slam! Astro hit the robot over the head with the girder.

  “Aaaaaah!” Peacekeeper Stone cried. He shook his head, spitting out a metal tooth.

  “Is that all you got?” he challenged.

  Astro tossed the girder aside and cracked his knuckles. He was ready for action. With a roar, he zoomed toward Peacekeeper Stone, pummeling the giant robot’s metal chest like a boxer hitting a speed bag.

  Then the big robot’s chest opened wide, and a mechanical claw grabbed Astro in an iron grip.

  “Objective complete. Blue Core obtained,” Peacekeeper Stone announced.

  He started to pull Astro inside his body, where the Red Core glowed brightly. Astro’s eyes flashed red in warning. Just as he was about to be absorbed by the Peacekeeper, there was a huge flash and an explosion.

  Astro went flying backward, landing on the top floor of a skyscraper. Peacekeeper Stone fell to the ground in agony.

  “Toby!”

  Astro turned to see that his father had found him.

  “Dad?” Astro ran to Dr. Tenma and fell into his arms with relief. But something was worrying him.

  “I don’t understand. Why didn’t it absorb me?” he asked.

  “Because it can’t.” Tenma replied. “If the Red and the Blue Core come together ... well, you both die.”

  Astro gazed out across the city. The Peacekeeper was back on his feet. Cora and the kids were zipping between the buildings, searching for Astro. Peacekeeper Stone spotted the vehicle and grabbed it in his hand.

  Astro knew what he had to do. It was all very clear to him now.

  “This is it. This is what I was created for,” Astro said. “This is my destiny.”

  “Toby, NO,” Dr. Tenma said sternly. He had lost his son twice already. He wasn’t about to lose him again.

  “I’m sorry, but that isn’t my name anymore,” Astro said. “Good-bye, Dad.”

  Astro’s face darkened. His eyes glowed with determination. Then he launched himself right at the Peacekeeper.

  “No!” Dr. Tenma yelled.

  Cora and the kids gasped in amazement as Astro streaked toward the immense robot. Sensing danger, Peacekeeper Stone stepped backward and swatted at Astro.

  Astro didn’t hesitate. He flew straight for the Peacekeeper’s chest.

  Once the Red and Blue Cores met, they both would be destroyed.

  It was the only way.

  CHAPTER 20

  Startled, Peacekeeper Stone lost his grip on the hover car. Zane sped away, then circled back around. The Peacekeeper was frantically clawing at the hole Astro had made in his chest. But he was too late.

  Boom!

&
nbsp; The Peacekeeper exploded, spewing forth everything he had absorbed during his rampage—even President Stone. The dazed man tumbled to the ground.

  President Stone stood up in the rubble, brushing off his black uniform. “What happened? Where am I? Who am I?”

  Nobody paid attention to him. Everyone rushed to Astro’s fallen body. It had broken apart into pieces.

  Cora gently arranged the pieces together, her eyes filling with tears.

  “Who is he?” a man in the crowd asked.

  “I don’t know, but he saved us,” a woman said. “That robot saved the whole city.”

  “Why would he care?” the man wondered.

  Dr. Elefun pushed his way forward. “Because that robot had more humanity than most of us,” he said. He looked at Cora. “Who are you?”

  “I’m a friend of his from the Surface,” Cora said.

  “You’re from the Surface?” someone asked.

  The crowd murmured in surprise. President Stone had always told them that Surface dwellers were violent savages. But Cora and the kids looked perfectly nice.

  “Can you fix him?” the man in the crowd asked.

  “No, I’m afraid not,” Dr. Elefun said.

  “Then can you make another one like him?” asked the woman.

  “No. His Blue Core was unique,” Dr. Elefun replied. “It could have regenerated the earth, brought back the forests, healed the planet. Now it’s died with him.”

  “It’s not fair,” Cora said tearfully. “All he ever did was help people.”

  “Not just people,” Zog said.

  Cora nodded. “Astro brought Zog back to life.”

  Dr. Elefun raised an eyebrow. “How?”

  “The blue stuff,” Zog replied.

  The scientist’s eyes lit up. “Do you have any of that blue stuff left?”

  Zog nodded.

  “Do you think you could spare some for our friend here?” Elefun asked.

  Zog stepped forward and picked up Astro. He beamed a ray of Blue Core energy with his eyes into Astro’s lifeless body. Everyone waited, holding their breath.

  Astro’s eyes fluttered open.