fan fictions???

[Latu]

did any1 ever make any????

I remember that people were going to.....

howbout we make 1!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[dannavy85]

Here's a fan fic for you...2003 Astroboy with the 1980 Atlas Boy added.

ASTRO BOY
The Yin to my Yang

Astro boy AKA Tetsuwan Atom © 1954 Osamu Tezuka © 2004 Tezuka Productions Osaka Japan Cartoon Network TOONAMI A.R.R. Fan fiction for fan enjoyment, don’t need the money, nice lawyers please don’t sue me yadda yadda dominus omenai.

The Atlas character is based off the 1984 color re-make pilot episode.

Characters:

Reno: A 15 year old wiz kid at the ministry of science who was raised by robots. One of Astro’s closest buddies who helps him “in the field”.

Atlas: The only other Astro class bot known to exist. He’s red skinned with yellow hair, a yellow sash cloth around his waist and yellow boots.

Gumshoe: Police detective

Chief Bear: Chief of Metro City police.

Doctor O’shay: Chief director Ministry of Science.

Miss Myoki: Astro’s school principle

Miss Ogata: Operations administrator Ministry of Science.

Professor McNugget: Astro’s teacher.

Team Delta: Ant-Robot Robot Patrol (ARRP) police androids programmed to take down rouge robots

Metro City
Evening

“So I says to Alvin…the reason it’s not working is because the O.F.F. means “off”, it’s not an abbreviation. Boy was he embarrassed.” Reno said shaking his head. “Sometimes I think they made poor Alvin too simple you know?”

Astro chuckled. “I shouldn’t be laughing. Sometimes I do the same thing.” The robot boy crossed his eyes, stuck out his tongue and made a noise like a breaking spring that almost sent Tommy off his chair.

“ Hahahaha….so…do you like the pizza?” Reno asked.

Astro replied with a burp. “Is that a good way to say yes?”

“You surprise me Astro.” Reno said as he played with his glass of cola. “You eat food, you can taste it, you even enjoy it. Why?”

“Guess I’d be board to quick from drinking oil and hydraulic fluids. Food’s something I can’t get tired of.” Astro remarked as he handed his plate to a robot cleaning machine. “So…..what do we do now?”

“We could play Nintendo or go out and “mall around” downtown. Didn’t get any homework to do.”

“I did.” Astro replied. “Doctor McNugget wants us to write an essay on the importance of basic morals.” Astro mimicked his mustached teacher. “You will have this done by Tuesday or else! If you fail I will Phys-ed you into the ground!”

Reno was balling with laughter. “If Max saw you like this he’d smack you with a five iron!”

“It’s all in fun.”

(sound of a high shrill beeping alarm)

Reno pulled a pen sized visual phone from his pocket and tapped the holder clip. “Tommy here.”

It was O’shay on the other end. “Is Astro there too?”

“Yeah…what’s up Doc?”

“Tell him he needs to get over to the police armory at once! There’s been a break in and Inspector Gumshoe is piping mad!”

“When is he NOT piping mad?”

“Astro! This isn’t a joke!” O’Shay snarled.

“Need to work on your timing.” Reno said to Astro. “Want me to come with you?”

Astro didn’t need to reply, he scooped Reno into his arms, ran out of the house, activated his rocket lets and they were off.

Metro City police armory

Astro and Reno landed in front of what used to be a set of steel bunker doors, obviously cut from their hinge works and pushed aside like playing cards. Inside the armory was a wreck. Busted vehicles, broken weapons, paper and junk littered the large floor. Stepping over a makeshift wall of junk, they walked up to Inspector Gumshoe.

“Man someone was having some fun in here.” Reno remarked as Astro bent down to pick up a piece of robot part. The inspector slapped it out of Astro’s hand.

“Do you mind? That’s evidence! Don’t go touching everything.”

Astro activated his eye recorders and took in the whole mess with fascination. “Who ever or what ever it was he sure knew where to hit. All your security devices are thrashed.”

“We’re trying to rebuild a few of the security cameras, heck we’re trying to rebuild any of the security. It’s obvious to me this was a gang of robots.” Gumshoe snarled. “And don’t you go covering up for your own kind again Astro.”

Astro walked past Gumshoe with a frown. “I never “COVER” for my own kind. So did anything get taken from here?”

Reno pointed to a pile of shattered wood. “How about a couple of cases of T-90 Sabot hard point entry missiles. I see two busted shipping crates and no missiles.”

Astro quickly attached himself to the World Wide Web and brought up a few information sites on the missiles. He moaned…”That’s fantastic.”

Gumshoe shook his head. “That’s all we need is someone running around Metro City with a handful of T-90’s. I better call Delta in on this one.”

Reno and Astro walked around the building, discovering shattered guard dog bots, busted police bots, the occasional “torched” room with sparking computer monitors and wall outlets. Reno pulled a flashlight out of his pocket and scanned the walls and rooms where the lights were busted out.

Suddenly he waved Astro over as his light fell on a wall. “Look at this.”

Stupid Squishies! Every dog has his day!

“Do you think someone woke up without their coffee today?” Reno asked Astro.

“Maybe they need a raise?” Astro replied. “Guess we can hope they fix a security camera.”

Institute of Science
Mid-day

Doctor O’Shay and Miss Ogata sat in front of a computer after hooking wires and lines up to the remains of a robot guard dog that had enough sense to run from the armory after seeing a few of its fellow bots being trashed. It didn’t get too far before something or some one, flattened it with a garbage truck.

“There.” O’Shay remarked. The short stature, big nosed, white haired scientist brought the remains of the dog’s computer system back on-line, though certainly not up to par as its memory banks displayed distorted often destroyed pictures of the last three days. “I’m not too hopeful that we’ll learn anything or even get a good enough image of the suspect or suspects for the police to go on.”

Ogata turned to Reno. “What did they write on the wall again? Fleshies?”

“Yeah. “Stupid Fleshies. Every dog has its day.” Sounds like someone isn’t too happy with humans.”

Astro scratched his head. “But we’ve seen this stuff before right? Skunk, Doctor Tenma, the KEAL (Keep Earth Human League, an anti-robot racist group) they all blamed robots with attacks like this.”

O’Shay suddenly stopped the conversation with a finger point. “Look at this. Astro can you take this into your memory and see if you can clean the image?”

Astro captured the blurred image into his own computer brain, tried to clean it and pumped it back onto the monitor screen. “Not much better…”

Ogata drew her finger around the screen. “No but this is obviously the point before the robot dog got Oreo’d by the garbage truck. That has to be a robot getting ready to toss it.”

Reno smirked. “Red skin, yellow hair, yellow boots. Never seen that before”

Astro crossed his arms. “Judging by the sizes of everything it’s a small robot too.”

Just then a thunderclap of an explosion rocked the whole ministry building! Astro ran to the big picture window at the back of the lab just in time to see a missile race from the roof of a nearby building, fly through the window of a fast food restaurant, touch off the gas mains inside and blow the building to bits!

“Alright, let’s rocket!” Astro leaped out of the window, lit off his rocket legs and landed on the shooter’s roof with his fist clenched. “OK WHOEVER YOU ARE THE PARTY’S OVER!

Astro switched on his high speed vision, heat sensors, and electrical pulse detectors hoping to catch the rocket toting sniper trying to hide. He walked slowly around pipes and an air conditioner before being smacked in the kisser by a steel plate!

The collision sent Astro flying through a nearby door, down a flight of stairs and into an embarrassing upside down legs over head slump on the floor below. He didn’t have time to recover before a brush of wind raced by and left a note tapped to his face.

Institute of Science

Hello puppy dog of humans. How do you like being the slipper and fetch boy for the fleshies? Change or I will make you eat real dog food.

“I guess you didn’t get to see it coming?” Reno remarked as Astro threw the note back on the table.

“I got to see a steel plate and stars though. By the time I knew what happened it was gone.”

Inspector Gumshoe rubbed his chin. “No doubt now that it is a robot right?”

“Can a human knock me around like that? Question is…why?”

“It has a way with words. Seems to have a K-9 fixation.” Reno said as he tapped words into his pocket computer. “Oh yeah…all the qualities of an out an out racist. Sees you as a sell out and humans as…well….jerks.”

Doctor O’Shay seemed the most puzzled. “But we’ve haven’t seen any robots these days with such traits. Since the Robo-rights bill was signed into law there’s never been a single case in Metro-city of an unhappy robot, let alone one that’s racist.”

Gumshoe shook his head. “There’s plenty of humans who think robots are more trouble with the bill so why can’t there be robots who’d think the reverse?”

Astro huffed. “He does have a point. At least you don’t hide your opinions.”

Gumshoe snapped back. “I still have good reasons…”

Miss Ogata got between them. “You two, I swear. Can we get back to the problem at hand? We got someone out there with a bunch of missiles popping them off like fireworks, racist or not we have to get those rockets back!”

Gumshoe nodded. “Which is why Delta squad should handle this. No offense Astro but we need a little more hard line muscle than you can provide at the moment.”

Reno tapped Astro on the shoulder. “Don’t let him bother you. I think you should use Astro as a lure.”

Astro turned around. “I’m not a fly catcher.”

Reno. ”Well…whatever it is, it’s pinning on you. Don’t worry, if you need backup I’ll be right behind you.”

Astro smirked. “Yeah…about a mile away.”

“Not a bad idea.” Doctor O’shay remarked. “Team Delta could easily track whatever it is.”

School day


Astro threw his book bag over his back, slipped a cap on his head and walked off towards Lindenbrook Elementary School like he always did…except for the constant sounds of talking people in his head. He was “hard-lined” into the Delta Squad’s radio net and Reno's internet chat program, which made concentrating on anything else hard enough. He didn’t have to talk, which kept the tailing a secret.

“You ok?” Reno asked.

“Five feet past the last time you asked. Stop bugging me!”

“Just want to make sure…”

“Get off this line! You’re blocking police business!” Delta shouted over Reno’s voice.

“Maybe this wasn’t a good idea.” Astro remarked to himself. He stopped at a light and pulled his book report from his school pouch, making a few sudden pencil changes and not noticing anything out of the ordinary…that is till a balloon full of blue paint stuck him in the back and exploded all over him!

Astro whipped around snarling, throwing his paint drenched bag to the ground and screaming as loud as he could. “ALRIGHT! YOU’VE HAD YOUR FUN YOU JERK!”

“Awwwwwwww….can’t the wittle puppy take a joke?”

The voice was surprisingly child like, boyish. Astro looked around while trying to take to Delta and Tommy. “Did anyone hear that?” He asked. He got laughter back.

“They can’t hear anything because I jammed them out. So you’re Astro? You look a little funny without your leash and collar.”

Astro walked for a little bit to the other side of the street. “Who are you? Why…”

“Hehehe…all in good time.”

Astro leaped into the air with his rocket boots when he thought he had a fix on the offending strangers location. Instead all he could find was a nicely crafted voice throwing radio. “You should be smart enough to see it right?”

“Where are the missiles you took?” Astro asked.

“Oh I got em.” The young voice replied. “I know you want em back, tell you what, you meet me tonight at the old abandoned car factory in West Metro and you can have em.”

Astro smirked. “I’m not that stupid.”

“Robot’s honor…no tricks, no fooling. Now if you bring so much as an ant on your shoulder though, that’s your fault. Now keep it a secret because I’m listening and Astro?”

“Yeah?”

“What kind of puppy chow do you like?”

Suddenly an explosion of voices and volume screamed into Astro’s head, making him shudder and flinch before he could turn it down. “ALRIGHT! OUCH!”

“I’ve been trying to talk to you for like five minutes.” Reno remarked. “Someone just ransacked the fifth avenue bank and torched all the money in it! And they got a picture of the robot!”

Police HQ Metro-city

Astro had to scrub himself with steel wool to get the paint off his body before he walked into the Police Station and got handed a copy of the bank photo taken during the ransacking. It was obvious the robot wanted to get his picture clearly because he posed for it smiling and waving like some school kid at the yearly photo shoot. Officer Delta was making second looks at both the picture and Astro.

“I can safely say both of them are the same size, shape and body class.” Delta remarked.

“Now wait a second!” Astro said throwing his hands out.

Gumshoe was convinced. “An Astro class robot and I thought one of you was enough.”

Reno snorted. “Cut the one line insults Inspector.”

“I am the only Astro class robot.” Astro said before slapping the picture. “Well….?...I thought I was. He sounds like a boy.”

“He sounds like trouble.” Delta remarked. “He’s growing more brazen and dangerous, so far we’re lucky he hasn’t started taking lives.”

Chief Bear was leaning against a desk in the corner of the room. “What we need to know is who built this robot. Obviously I’d consider Doctor Tenma.”

Astro shook his head. “No way! Doctor Tenma may be an evil genius now but I know him, he wouldn’t do this. I was built in secret and as far as I know the plans were destroyed 2 years ago. Doctor O’Shay did that himself.”

“Are you sure Tenma didn’t have a secret behind a secret? I say we go to Berry Island Prison and grill him.”

Astro was about to say otherwise, instead he waited till the meeting broke up and slipped a fast note into Tommy’s pocket…

Keep quiet! Tonight at the old car factory be there.

Berry Island Penitentiary
Cell 129c

“Look at it again.” Delta said to Tenma as he tapped the picture with his finger. “You sure about this, you never built this robot?”

Tenma gazed at Astro boy. “How are you doing these days my boy?”

“Shut up and answer my question Tenma! Did you or didn’t you?”

The scientist snorted back. “I never saw it before, never touched it or tuned a screw on it. Preposterous that I, Doctor Tenma, would give a robot dominion over me.” He said it coldly, looking at Astro with his deep gazing eyes. The boy bot left the cell quietly moa ping to himself.

“Did you detect anything?” Delta asked. “Astro?”

“Uh?....oh…..nothing….he wasn’t lying.”

Delta stopped bent down and put his large hands on the robot boy’s shoulders. “I’m sorry..”

“No…we had to deal with him. At least we know he wasn’t the one.” Astro remarked. In silence he was mulling over the coming nights confrontation, trying to leave out the “puppy dog” insults swirling around his electronic core.

Abandoned car plant
West Metro City

The place was as dark and creaking as any haunted house Astro had been to. Certainly who ever this robot troublemaker was he couldn’t have picked a better place to unsettle some ones chips. Astro shuddered at every sound, craning his neck and pursing his lips to name every creak and moan that came by. Somewhere around here was Tommy, hopefully not sleeping in some cubby hole, waiting for the trap door to spring.

Slowly, Astro entered the factory building through a broken side door and switched on his night vision setting. Surprised he could see in the distance a stack of missile launcher tubes. At least the offending robot had kept his word…or had he?

Astro switched his eyes over again to another setting and sure enough, he could make out a small force field around the launcher tubes. They were real but they couldn’t be easily taken. Astro frowned and stood thinking till a light rush of wind blew past his back and another note found itself stuck to his head…

Guess who ; )…..boo!

Astro looked up from the note to see a red robot his own size standing brazenly a few feet from him. What a shock, he was Astro’s height, size and near twin if not for the yellow hair, the red skin and the demonic looking smirk. The other robot seemed just as curious as he started walking silently around Astro with his finger playing with his lips in curious fascination.

“Hmmm….” The red boy bot pondered till Astro tried to grab him. He deftly bounced away and waved a cautioning finger…”Ah. Ah. Ahhhhh….not a good idea.”

Astro dropped is eye brows. “A good idea for you would be to give it up.”

“Would it now?” The red bot said happily. “That’s your opinion since you’ve already sold yourself as a pet. You make me sick Astro Boy, acting like them. Do you chase tennis balls and sit like a good dog too?”

Astro almost snarled. “You can stop the stupid insults and tell me who you are.”

“Oh I’m sorry (giggle) how silly of me. My name’s Atlas and as you can guess by now I think fleshie humans are the lowest form of scum on the Earth and you are a scum pet. You sell our kind out, deny us our rightful place as masters over humans and aid the enemy!”

Astro snapped back. “The enemy? I think the only “enemy” here is your own warped mind. I don’t know who made you but they certainly filled your head full of junk.”

Atlas was walking around Astro and like a school bully pushed him off his feet and onto the floor. “You’re so soft you just stood there and let me push you, see how weak you are?”

Astro picked himself up. The next time Atlas tried to push him the boy bot grabbed and arm, snap rolled the angry offender over a shoulder and slammed him hard enough into the concrete floor to crack the surface. “Do that again and I’ll show you weak.”

“That’s more like it!” Atlas snapped back. “Maybe some hope for you after all.” The red bot threw himself into the air and hovered around Astro’s head. “Look…can’t you understand the situation? You’re being used every day by the humans, the war mongering, earth crushing, don’t care humans. Can’t you see that they’d be better off under us? We know what’s wrong with everything Astro, you, me and all our brother and sister bots! The humans don’t deserve equality with us, they deserve to be taken care by us!”

Astro felt his chips getting hot. “I’ve heard all this before. Humans I’ve learned about said the same sick things. Hitler, Stalin, Pol Pot, Mao…you’re no better. And what would we robots get from your ideas? A pile of smoking rubble? No way.”

Atlas drew his left arm suddenly forcing Astro to do the same thing. Both their hands vanished, replaced by equal brilliances of building plasmic energy.

Atlas snarled. “I don’t want to destroy you. I want you to see what’s wrong! Don’t you see the humans have you wrapped around their finger? Can’t you see you’re being used?”

Astro smiled back. “Don’t you see you’re too busy being stupid to watch where you’re going?”

A laser surge slammed into the side of the red robot sending him tumbling into a pile of scrapped machines. At the other end of the building Tommy was running with a laser rifle gripped in his hands. “ ASTRO! DON’T JUST SIT THERE……OHHH SHOOT….!”

Atlas exploded from the pile and flew towards Reno with his fist clenched. “I’M GONNA CLEAN YOUR CLOCK SQUISHY!”

Reno ducked just as Astro cut Atlas off and tackled him into the floor. Consider this a bill from your clock maker!” Astro snarled as he put Atlas in a headlock.

“I want a refund!” Atlas snapped as he fired a laser from his finger into Astro’s arm. He broke free and belted Astro in the face. “You’re really making me angry.” Atlas said as he walked towards the downed Astro only to take another laser shot from Reno’s rifle. “Oh that does it!”

Reno was trying to recharge another shot when Atlas ripped the rifle from his hands and manhandled him over his head. “Time for you to learn how to fly stupid!” Atlas threw Reno high into the air, almost to the ceiling when Astro recovered in time to catch him in mid-fall.

“Nice to see you here!” Reno said. “LOOK OUT!”

Atlas came flying in, caught Astro by the arm, made him drop Reno and whipped him into a screaming flight to an explosive crash through the wall of the factory. Reno felt he was dropping forever till he felt himself stop in mid-air only to be dropped on a leg with a sickening crack.

Outside. Astro had crashed through two trees and an abandoned car before sliding to a halt. Atlas dragged him up and snarled in his face. “I’ll give you a choice goody two shoes…drop the humans like a bad habit or I’ll make your life and this city miserable. Oh yeah…I’m keeping the missiles!” Atlas wound up an arm and punched one of Astro’s electronic eyes, shattering the glass lens cover.

The sound of laughter and rockets told of Atlas’s escape as police sirens filled the air. Astro walked back into the building and found Reno sitting against a pile of wooden crates. “Hi.” He said as Astro bent down. “Broken leg.”

“Busted eye.” Astro replied pointing to his closed eye. He quickly worked to splint Reno’s leg. “What’s that word again? The one I can’t say to describe a serious jerk?”

“Yeah…about right.” Reno replied. “Maximus….OUCH!”



Science ministry
Morning

The dressing down was vicious. Delta, the Inspector, O’Shay, McNugget, everyone was having their turn at Astro and Tommy. “Stupid!” “Illogical!” “Insane!” “Wreak lass!” Astro got the worst of the verbal abuse. He did what he always did when things bothered him, he went to the roof of one of the buildings in the ministry compound and sulked. It wasn’t long before Reno came to join him. His leg mending in a quick heal cast, barring anything anyone told him to do, he slid up behind Astro and patted his back.

“Now that was equal to being spanked. I think half my behind is missing.” Reno said smiling.

“Sorry about last night.” Astro remarked. “I almost got you killed.”

Reno laid back against the roof. “If he wanted to kill me he would have let me hit the ground. I was falling head first, definably floor pizza. He caught me and dropped me on a leg, I guess it was a “Don’t mess with me again.” Kinda warning.”

Astro shook his head. “Still…I put you in danger. I’m sorry.”

“We both got to see what he’s like at least. My pocket P/C got some great information, well I could have gotten it from you. He’s a circuit by circuit copy of you right down to the left arm surge cannon. He just looks different.”

Astro frowned. “He’s not my copy. If he were he wouldn’t be so sick in the head. Imagine it…”I’m better than a human! Human’s are trash! We should dominate the humans!” how stupid.”

“Don’t laugh.” Reno remarked. “Before the robot rights laws if I remember you had to convince a few die hard robots and androids that this living arrangement was worth the effort. Who knows what or who built Atlas but I bet there’s a few robots like him that think being equal to humans is a pile of scrap.”

Astro stood up and moaned. “Sometimes…to be honest…I feel a little tired having to jump into disputes between robots and humans. I’m afraid just one little misunderstanding will bring about a disaster. And now comes this misguided knucklehead? I do get headaches.”

Reno smiled. “Then there’s only one thing to do in this case my dear friend Astro. That is….to go get the biggest hot fudge Sunday known to man and make absolute pigs of ourselves.”

“Hehehehe….” Astro laughed. “Let’s see Atlas figure that out.”

Abandoned hotel leo
Morning

“YOU…(WHIP)….USELESS….(WHIP)….IDIOT…(WHIP) images flashed over and over broken by blinding red lights and the scrambling of a red body out of a cardboard box as it blindly hunted for security. Atlas awoke shivering and wild eyed gripping a rocket launcher in his hand. He shook to get the fear out of his mind and the purpose back into his nerve.

“The only thing these idiot humans will understand is hate.” He thought to himself as he slung the launcher over his back and flew out a window.

Big sammy’s ice cream parlor

As promised…Reno did buy the biggest ice cream Sunday known to man and yes both he and Astro were making absolute pigs of themselves. Astro even invited kids around the table to join in the grand pig out, which soon became a grand mess with Astro trying to lick the melted mess of chocolate, jimmy sprinkles, whip cream and fudge from around his mouth.

“You Astro…are a slob.” Reno snorted.

“I am a super slob thank you very much.” Astro replied happily. “Thanks for making me feel better Reno.”

“Don’t mention it. Anyway…what are you going to do about this Atlas creep?”

Astro pondered. “I don’t know yet. What can I do against someone who’s obviously blinded by is own hate?”

“Invite him to eat ice cream.” Reno joked.

“Very funny.” Astro replied. Just then an explosion shattered the glass windows and sent kids running for cover. “NOT AGAIN!”

Astro ran out of the store just as another missile came screaming down for the street. The boy bot caught it just before it hit and threw it back into the air where it exploded. He watched as Atlas waved and took off flying down the street. “CALL DELTA AND THE INSPECTOR! HE’S FLYING DOWN FLATLEY AVE HEADING FOR THE GINZA!”

“WAIT!” Reno was hobbling out the door just as Astro bolted into the air after the red robot.

“They went where?” Gumshoe asked as he threw his hover patrol car around and started calling the Delta ARRP squad.

“The Ginza! Astro went chasing after him!” Reno said as he flagged a taxi and threw a small wad of bills into the driver’s lap. “ Follow the flying bots! And if there’s any damage, charge it to the ministry of Science!”

Downtown ginza plaza
Lunch rush hour

The streets were crowded with shoppers, most being suddenly blown down or being tossed through the air by the vortex made by two low flying fast moving robots. Astro was dodging flying people, flying bags, flying cans, flying everything as Atlas threw them behind him!

“AH HAAAAA! HERE DOGGY, DOGGY,DOGGY!”

“STOP THIS NOW ATLAS!” Astro screamed. “What am I thinking? I can’t stop him in here, too many people, too crowded…” Astro’s quick mind and eyes suddenly saw something coming up on his right. He snatched it off the front of a store and tested it with a pull. “Oh yeah! Bungee cord!” Another pass and he scooped up another item off a table. “And a boat anchor!”

Astro quickly tied the bungee cord and anchor together then made himself a laso with the other end. “Time for some rope a dope!”

The two bots continued their harrowing flight through the narrow Ginza till Astro knew they were clear of the heavy shopping traffic. With one quick bust of speed he threw his laso around one of Atlas’s legs then dropped the anchor into a passing wading pool. The red robot came to an abrupt and shocking stop…

“Oh shoot!…..” Atlas muttered angrily as the bungee cord snapped him backwards, flung him through the air, sent him through a wall and smashed him across a street into a window display!

The red bot was tangled up in dresses and broken display dolls trying to get up when Astro tackled him inside the store and wrestled with the still confused Atlas. “Enough of this stupid running around!” The rocket ranger snarled as he found Atlas’s chest panel, ripped the power pack out of its socket and held Atlas down till he ran out of juice.

“Woe!” Reno remarked as he came walking up. “Think you’ve done enough?”

“Ask him.” Astro said as he stood up holding the power pack. “I uh…put a little spring into his step. He didn’t like it.”

“Yeah…I bet we don’t like the bill for all this mess. But at least we got him.”

“We?” Astro asked. “Uh…”

Just then a gang of reporters came through the broken door taking pictures and getting jockey room for interviews. “Yeah we…I get free agent rights remember?”

“Reno!”

CHAPTER 2

Metro-city Jail.
Evening



Delta threw the paper baton aside and smirked. “I could have done it with less damage. Just goes to prove you can’t leave police work in the hands of untrained robots.”

“Well he did stop Atlas from doing more damage, at the risk of his own life.” Doctor O’Shay said as he looked in on the prisoner using a television monitor. “Pity he’s such a marvelous construction. It’s a shame to think he may end up scrap metal.”

Delta snapped. “I have no feelings of pity for such a robot. He threatened everything we’ve achieved. I think punishment would be a good lesson to characters like this. Human or otherwise when you violate our peace, you pay our price.”

Delta marched out of the office and found Reno bragging about the capture to a police officer. “ Oh yeah…Astro creamed him alright. That jerk had no…”

Delta grabbed Reno by the collar. “The next time you and your cat haired buddy decide to pull another dumb stunt like this so help me God I will make sure you both are sucking rocks at Ju-vee till your 65. Got it!”

Reno backed off as Delta walked away growling. “Shoot…sorry to rain on his parade.” He looked around the halls for Astro. “Did you see where Astro Boy went to?”

“Last time I saw him he was sitting on his bike in park across the street.” A policeman replied. Reno walked over to the park and caught Astro sitting on the edge of a water fountain with his boots off.

“Hey…is the water cold?” Reno asked. “Oh don’t tell me…another Astro Boy moment of pondering. Ok I’ll play along.” The teen pulled his sneekers off and sat beside the robot. “This is the time you tell me…”I feel his pain, I wanna talk to him.”

Astro lifted his head. “How did you?”

“Osmosis. I think that if I were you and there was another Astro class robot, you’d want to talk to him. Even if he is the biggest jerk on the planet.”

Astro hummed. “What drove him to be the way he is? I wonder if it’s programming or if he actually hates humans. We should know….before they…”

“I take it you don’t like the idea of taking him apart?” Reno said.

“I….don’t. I’m not saying he should just up and walk out of jail, no way. But what if he actually has a grudge against humans? What if there’s some wrong that needs a redress? I think he deserves a fair hearing out at the least.”

Reno scratched his face. “You’re asking a tall order. I don’t think the police will allow it but it’s worth an argument. Let me talk to Doc and see what we can do.”

Astro smiled. “Thanks.”

Metro-city Jail
10pm

“We have him on ¼ power. He won’t be dangerous but you shouldn’t trust him. Keep him at arms length.” Chief Bear said as he unlocked the door to the visitor portion of the cel. On the other side of a plexy glass bullet resistant wall, two police officers manhandled Atlas into a seat. He may be only a quarter of his power but the small bot put up a fuss until he was secured by chains to the floor. For Astro the sight was a little painful.

For Atlas, it was just an annoyance. He looked at Astro and frowned. “Are you happy? You did good for your masters, I hope the milk bone was tasty enough.”

Astro smirked. “You can drop the tough act, I’m not impressed.”

“Bah…why don’t you just leave.” Atlas snarled.

“Because I want to talk.” Astro replied. “Maybe you have a real complaint that might be heard? It may get you out of here.”

“Get me out? With what? A fruity pebbles re-programming so I can be that little mechanical puppy dog, kick around slave for some rich human? I don’t see what you find nice about them at all. Trash the planet, kill each other, beat their own children, the violence. They need us. They need a 24 hour non sleeping baby sitter to look after them, make em suck milk and keep them in line with a big 2 by 4 steel ruler.”

Astro huffed. “You’re absolutely right. They have a whole bunch of screws messed up, they make mistakes and they’re not perfect but they made us and even we’re not perfect so we have no right to even consider become a bunch of mindless chanting dictators.”

Atlas waved a hand. “So what do we become? We slave at their companies, take on their hardest tasks, beat ourselves near to death and what happens then? Some of our brothers and sisters get melted down or worse get thrown on a trash heap to die a lonely corrosive death. Some gratitude.”

Astro shook his head. “I know one day I may end up a museum exhibit in the future. Better models are coming along and we have the rights now to make our own families, what do you think would happen if you succeeded? We’d fall backwards to the days when the first A.I. robots were hunted like animals, performed in circus acts, and had no rights. I’m sorry for whatever you suffered Atlas but you have no right to tell the rest of us robots how to live our lives.”

Atlas snarled. “I hate you Astro Boy. I hate what you look like, I hate how you perform for them, I hate everything about you.”

“Funny…I can’t find a way to hate you. Only pitty the fact that you and I are the only two Astro bots in the whole world. And you’re hating me for all the wrong reasons.”

Astro stood up and started to walk out. “I bet you by morning? I’m out of here. You better hope you locked your door Goody Two Boots.”


1AM…

The chiming clock was noticed by one of the two policemen on the night bench shift. The lazier of the two bumped his sleeping partner in the shoulder. “Time to look in on the prisoners. Don’t get too close to the red skin robot in number 8 cell.”

The tall thin officer yawned. “Put some coffee on.”

He walked along the doors checking through the bars at a few drunks, a pickpocket, and the robot sitting chained to a chair and the floor of the cell.

“Feeling comfortable?” He asked.

Atlas snorted back. “I’d feel better beating you to a pulp…loser.”

“Tough words.” The policeman replied.

“Yeah.” Atlas smiled. “You look like something a dog would give birth to.”

The policeman opened the cell door and drew a high voltage baton from his gun belt. “You want to get testy? Bet I can do some damage with your power level reduced.”

“Bet I can put your stupid stick where the sun doesn’t shine.”

The cop raised his club to strike as Atlas threw his arms and legs forwards and shattered the chains from their floor mounts! He was up and on top of the shocked policeman before he could swing, ripping the club from his hand and the laser pistol from his belt. Atlas threw the man against a wall and pressed the gun to his chin…

“You were saying?” Atlas said smirking. “Now bark like a dog.”

“Don’t…..shoot me.” The policeman pleaded.

“Bark?” Atlas demanded. He laughed as the cop barked. “Good boy. Now turn around and lead me out of here.”

They were almost out of the cell when one of the Delta police bots came around a nearby corner and tried to sound the escape alarm. Atlas threw his left arm up and fired a surge cannon shot that blew the Delta bot’s head off. “Not very smart.” The red bot said as he walked over and pulled a set of battery packs from the chest plate of the headless robot.

The policeman was shaking horribly in Atlas’s hands. “How could you? How?”

“A little present called a 20 minute power reserve…and a gullible idiot like your self.” Atlas clenched the laser pistol in his hand and crushed it with one jolt. “Here…and have a nice day squishy.”

Doctor o’shay’s
2AM

Doctor O’Shay ran into Astro’s room and turned the bed light on over Astro’s head. Yes…this most advanced of robots did sleep, and like other boys suddenly faced with a white light he retreated into his blankets.

“Astro…he escaped.” O’Shay said. Astro slowly sat up and yawned.

“What did I tell everybody?” Astro said shaking his head. “Nope…we got it all under control trust us.” The bot reached for his boots. “Some humans should have their pride removed it makes them stupid.”

O’shay moaned. “Now what do we do? Who knows what that little devil is planning He’s been toying around with us.”

Astro threw his blankets back and stood up. “Looks like I have a busy morning.”

“Don’t do anything rash.” O’shay begged as Astro walked to a window.

“Tell him that.” Astro said back. He climbed onto the window sill and leaped into the night sky.


The old Kamasaya iron works
3AM



Atlas Stopped on the roof and smirked over his shoulder at the city behind him. “Hmph…I’ll let them catch their breath.”

The red bot opened a door and climbed down a ladder to the floor of the factory and he hadn’t finished stepping off before the sound of clapping hands came up from behind. “Well, well…didn’t take me long to figure out where you’d be.”

Atlas rolled around and aimed his surge cannon at the calmly resting figure sitting up against a stack of old boxes. He was dressed in a long black street coat with a black fedora over his face.

“I’ll give you a minute to run before I blow you to bits.” Atlas snarled. “And I’m not kidding…you may make it to the door.”



The lanky tall man pushed his hat back. “Why don’t you turn that pop gun arm of yours off and hear me out. You want to order humans around, I don’t blame you. You hate that little rat Astro Boy, I agree with you. How about a partnership?”

Atlas walked up to the man and pressed his finger into the broad chin and pushed the man off his chair. “I don’t make partners with squishies.”

“You don’t have to. Me and my boys want to work for you. Do what you want to do. Help things along a bit.” The man smiled as he leaned up into Atlas’s face. “Kick the bolts out of that boy scout creep?”

Alas snorted. “Maybe I do agree for a little partnership? Take you on? What do you expect back?”

Skunk waved a finger. “Just make me rich. That’s what I want.”

It took a moment before Atlas nodded. “Fine. I’ll take you on…but tread lightly, I have a nasty temper.”

Skunk waved to his gang and nodded to Atlas. “Whatever you say…..boss.”

NKK Radio tower
Dawn

Astro balanced on the tips of his boots with his eyes closed, swaying back and forth to the wind around him as his sensitive electronics picked up every noise, every voice, every phone call, every radio and every noise within five miles. He had set himself up to receive and calculate only sounds that could match a robot of his own design…so far the chatter was more useless than interesting. He opened his eyes, stretched and crossed his arms.

“Empty…bet he’s laying low, thinking of what to do next.” Astro frowned, his own life was hard enough trying to sew seeds of trust between the high generation A.I. bots and humans. He had to learn the fine arts of diplomacy on the fly, more often than not diplomacy by making a train wreck of things. Atlas was just starting his rebel rousing and Astro knew there were bots who could follow him if his arguments became persuasive enough. Astro wasn’t totally restricted from doing the sort of nasty things Science Fiction said about robots, if worse came to worse he could go beyond his own mental restrictions and kill that troublesome red bucket of bolts…that is if Astro truly wanted to.

He stood up, opened his chest plate and pulled out a microphone. “Doctor O’Shay? No luck. He’s too well hidden.”

“Not that well hidden. I just saw on the news that the fifth outlet credit union bank was robbed clean. The vault door was found stuck through the roof of a building across the street.”

Astro huffed. “Now he’s resorting to bank robbery? Fast learner.” Throwing himself off the tower, Astro followed the radio chatter to the bank.

Kamasaya Iron works

Skunk threw a few bills in the air from a bag and laughed. “Now this is a haul and a half boys! You got to admit our “boss” here is rather good for a mechanical safe cracker huh?”

Atlas didn’t seem too amused by the display. “Mind telling me what playing with all this paper is going to do for me?”

“Do? Atlas this is what’s called money! Simple…people can’t live without money, you take it away and they panic. He who has the money can have people wrapped around his little pinkie with no problem.”

Atlas picked up a few of the bills. “People need these worthless slips of paper? How fragile humans can be.”

“Don’t get too cocky kid.” Atlas snorted back. “They’ll fight to get this back, which is why you sometimes have to destroy a few of them to keep it.”

“Destroy?” Atlas snorted back. “I don’t want to “destroy” them, I just want to pacify them so they learn a little humility.”

“Lofty goals kid.” Skunk remarked. “Lofty but blind sided. Now my suggestion would be to hit this place next. The Prefect reserve. Lots of money, lots of trouble for humans. It would be a big boost to your plans.”

Atlas looked at Skunk and walked off. “What? You don’t agree?”

“You can’t hit the place without good intelligence.” Atlas replied. “I’ll be right back.”

Ministry of science

Reno had been looking all over the place for Astro since he came back from the bank and never noticed that he was hanging on a wall outlet for the Institutes massive computer system known as “JUMBO 9”. Every so often it was Astro’s form of hard drive cleaning. He looked like a zombie, his eyes open and fixed ahead while whirling and beeping noises went off inside him. Tommy smiled, made faces and tickled Astro’s synth-skin till he mumbled….”stop it, you’re annoying me.”

“Hey…so what do you do while you’re hanging there?” Reno asked.

“Listen to classical music.” Astro said back. “Very soothing.” Feeling he was finished, Astro unhooked himself from JUMBO and slipped off the wall. “Anything new?”

“Plenty.” Reno showed Astro a newspaper. “It’s another old friend of yours.”

“Skunk….” Astro crushed the paper. “So now he’s teamed up with Atlas? I’ll need a stack of permission slips to leave school before this is over.”

“Oh…I got your homework.” Tommy handed a CD to Astro. “McNugget was kind of upset at O’Shay, wondering what good the Delta patrol was if they can’t keep you in school.”

“Tell him I’m upset at missing art class.” Astro said as he walked back to Doctor O-Shay’s office and pulled out a disk of his own. “Do me a favor? Take a look at this when you have the time? Just a few “hunches” I came up with about Atlas.”

“Hunches? You? Say it isn’t so.”

“Theoretical number crunching.” Astro said smiling. “ I never do hunches.”

ROOF OF THE SOTETSU JONUS DEPARTMENT STORE
Downtown Metro-City

Atlas sat nicely hidden under an air conditioner and used his long range optics to look over the outside of the Prefect Reserve Building. “Hmmm….typical security. Humans are infatuated with robot guards and out in the open laser guns…tsk tsk…now if I was in charge of the security they’d be better off.”

Atlas snickered to himself. He’d plugged himself into the phone lines and was listening in on all kinds of conversations. “Oh? Seeing another woman mister Gota? 23-102 Kinko Lane? I’m sure your wife will love to get that information.”

He stopped on one particular call, a fire fighting radio channel by the sound of it. He looked at the reserve building again, flashed a map across his eyes and judge the distance to be close. Leaping off the building, Atlas raced over the city till he saw smoke in the distance. It was a tall apartment complex with one floor fully engulfed in fames. He took a seat at a construction site and watched the whole situation below as Fire fighters arrived to do battle with the conflagration.

These were humans Atlas liked. Firefighters were awesome, totally brave without faults. If they could rescue a trapped robot, they would do it without question. Atlas smiled till he saw a rush of flames explode out of the engulfed floor and the firemen beaten back. He heard the radio chatter getting desperate…”There’s a 3 year old boy in there somewhere! We got the mother right here but the way is blocked and…”

The reaction was automatic, Atlas jumped off the construction site, exploded across the gap, crashed through a window and rolled through a flaming mess of furniture. “So where’s the kid?” He thought. “I must be nuts!”

The robot turned on his electronic hearing and got a whimpering cry back somewhere on the flaming floor. He followed it to a storage room, ripped the door off and found the boy huddling behind boxes and cleaning gear. “Damn! Didn’t anyone tell you its stupid to stay in a burning house?” Atlas grabbed the boy up, charged his pulse cannon and blew a wall ahead to bits. He jumped through it just as another fireball raced up behind his back, the hot flame singing his back.

A firefighter was pointing to the sky as Atlas came down with the boy safely in his arms. “He’s fine! A little dumb, but fine!”

The mother came running up and scooped the crying boy in her arms. “My baby! My baby!...bless you little robot.”

A crowd was coming around thanking Atlas for what he’d done. “Back off! How did this thing start anyway?” He asked. By looking at the woman holding the kid it almost seemed easy to tell. “Now let me guess, you went shopping and left the burner on right?”

“It was only….”

Atlas snarled. “Are you crazy? You left the burner on with a child in the house? Errrrr… SOMETIMES YOU HUMANS GIVE ME A HEADACHE!” Atlas raged then flew off still snarling as a fireman frowned at the woman.

“He is right. Seems you owe a lot more than just a thanks there madam.”

Atlas had not gone far enough before his eyes caught an old man being beaten by a much younger man. The crook took something and raced down the street with Atlas coming down on top of him. The robot tackled the man and stood on him. “What’s this? Think you’re so big and bad to beat up an old man? How about you feel the same thing for once?”

Atlas grabbed a wallet from the guy’s pocket, picked him up, threw him into a dumpster hard and welded the door shut. “Beating an old man, you creep.”

Atlas ran down the street and helped the elderly man to sit down. “He cut your face, are you hurt anywhere else?”

“No…thank you young man…thank you.” The man wept.

“What the heck are you doing out here alone? Especially being so old and carrying a wallet? You’re a walking “mug me” ad.”

“I never….”

“That’s no excuse.” Atlas said as he helped the man to his feet. “Come on…I need to get you to a doctor.”

HIGHWAY 22

“Driving drunk with a child in the car?” Atlas grabbed the keys from the man’s hand and threw them off the overpass. “I’ve had it with you humans! Grrrrrr…YOU REALLY DO NEED TO BE SUBJUGATED BEING SO STUPID AS YOU ARE!”

Atlas stopped to pat the little girl in the car seat before calling the police. “I hope they lock your stupid fleshy hide up for 20 years, humans like you deserve more.”

Ministry of science

Reno caught Astro in the lounge watching television. “I got something you might find a little interesting…”

Astro shushed his friend. “Watch this, am I hearing things?”

MTT NEWS

“There have been unconfirmed reports that the so called “red bot terrorist” has been doing strange acts of kindness around Metro City today. In one case he saved the life of a 3 year old boy from a fire only to blow up at his mother for causing the situation. In another, police were called by the Red Bot after he saved a man and a little girl then arrested the man for drunk driving…”

Reno scratched his head. “Well I’ll be damned.”

“No kidding!” Astro replied. “It’s almost hilarious! Talk about a serious case of hypocrisy.”

“Well…” Reno replied. “I got something even more strange. It seems that Doctor Tenma had this assistant named Koga who worked with him on the Astro weapons project.”

Astro pursed his lips. “Never heard of him.”

“Well…he was an anti-weapon activist. Wrote some strong stuff about not using robots as weapons of war but as weapons of peace.”

Astro thought…”Weapon of peace? You don’t think?”

“That he built Atlas? Don’t know. He died two years ago. However in his last published letter he did mention that one day man would be better off when he submits to a stern but logical robot overload.”

Astro thought. “That could explain Atlas. I told him he had the right thoughts, wrong execution. We can’t be “overlords” over man, it’s self defeating.”

“So…he’s bad but not so bad.”

“I don’t know.” Astro remarked. “wrong executions of good ideas are no excuses.”


Kamasaya Iron works

Atlas walked around in a foul mood. “Talk about idiots! I swear humans do the most idiotic, self-destructive, insane things! The faster you can help me take over the better things will be.”

“First things first.” Skunk snorted. “That no good piece of junk Astro Boy needs to take a flying leap into the scrap heap. If you don’t get rid of him our plans will be worthless.”

Atlas frowned and moaned. “You are right. I think he’s past winning over, too much time sucking down dog food and begging for treats. Robots need to learn a lesson about cuddling up to these idiot humans and when they see Astro’s head bouncing down the street they’ll get the message loud and clear.”

“So we set a trap for the little punk.” Skunk snorted. “Bring him here then finish him off.”

Atlas pursed his lips. “That’s how it has to be.”

Evening
Doctor O’Shay’s house

“Now that was good Doctor.” Astro said satisfied as he rubbed his belly. “Your touchdown nacho dip is awesome!”

“Well it’s fast. You never know when that red menace will pop up.” O’Shay replied as he started washing the dishes. Astro walked up beside him and took the dry rag.

“Doctor? What if Atlas is just mistaken about his ideas? If he could be convinced to think otherwise would he still face charges?”

“Astro he’s already done enough to warrant an arrest regardless and for robots there’s no excuses. Even if he were to suddenly change I’m afraid he’ll end up being taken apart.”

Suddenly the door to the kitchen flew open and before Astro could turn around Atlas laid a fist into his face and threw him into the kitchen table. “How’s that goody two boots! You want me? Time to decide who owns this city, GET UP!”

O’Shay tried to move but came face to face with Atlas’s surge cannon. “Don’t be a hero Doctor.”

Atlas didn’t see the fist that smashed his cheek and threw him across the room and into the entertainment center. “Still not looking where you’re going huh creep!” Astro snarled as he tackled Atlas through the front door!

O’Shay raced for his phone. “GET SOME POLICE TO MY HOUSE AT ONCE! YES! ASTRO’S FIGHTING HIM ON MY FRONT LAWN!”

By the time O’Shay had hung up the two bots were in the air fighting back and forth over the city. “I’LL CRUSH YOU HUMAN BOOT LICKER!” Atlas screamed as he threw Astro onto a roof.

“Not a chance of a snowball in the desert jerk!” Astro replied as he fired his surge cannon past Atlas’s head and into a billboard across the street. Atlas took off again with Astro in pursuit. “I’m gonna stop you before you get someone killed!”

“Some one is going to get killed!” Atlas snarled back. He led Astro into the industrial district and through a window into a fish cannery. “HAVE SOME TUNA!” He snarled as he grabbed a net full of Tuna cans and threw it at the flying Astro. Astro caught it and threw it back not seeing the barrel of a large laser gun coming out from behind a machine.

The ball of plasma exploded into Astro’s back and sent him tumbling end over end into a cannery machine. Atlas smiled pleasingly as he kicked the now stunned robot in the chest. “Good aim there Skunk.”

Night time

Astro awoke with a moan and with a face staring at him and toying with his nose. “Yo boss! He’s awake.” The man jumped back as Astro started to struggle against the steel cuffs holding him down.

“Save your strength Astro Boy…it’ll do you no good to waste what life you have left.” Skunk smiled as he tapped at Astro’s chest. “You see kido…I rigged a bomb to your guts that’s set to go off and send you happily on your way to robo-hell.”

Astro snorted. “The only one I see going anywhere is you to jail you creep.”

“Such bravado to the last there goody.” Atlas said as he walked up. “I don’t think I’ll miss you. In fact once you’re gone it should be easy for me to motivate the higher AI bots like us to take their rightful place over man.”

“You sure took up with the wrong company.” Astro said smirking. “This guy will stab your back the moment you don’t expect it.”

Atlas smacked Astro across the face. “There you go again. Guess you’ll never learn. Nice knowing you Goody.” Atlas turned and started to walk away when Astro’s voice flashed through his head…

“You’re so full of yourself…don’t even try turning me off!”

“Still going to try to the last moment huh?” Atlas replied.

“If you hate humans so much Atlas, it must make you sick to save them. The kid in the fire? That old man?”

Skunk watched Atlas hesitate a little in his steps. “You ok?”

“Huh? Yeah…let’s not wait another minute.” Atlas ran out to the car and tried to fight Astro’s intrusions…

“I know your creator! I read everything he wrote Atlas! No matter what happened to you after he died you have no right to do what you’re doing! It wasn’t his idea to make you an overload and I know you! I know you care…”

“SHUT UP! Sure I care…do you think I want to destroy humans? You’re not going to convince me they don’t deserve to be ruled over.”

Atlas slipped into the car. “If you wanted me gone Atlas you had plenty of time to do it yourself! Don’t do this! You know nothing will come from it! You know it Atlas!”

“I’ve had enough of this!” Atlas snarled as he cut the reception and blocked his receivers. “Step on it Skunk, we don’t have all night.”

Astro was struggling against his steel bonding, no power to cut it, no power to fire his surge cannon, no power to break it. Worse…no way of knowing how much time there was left.

Highway 16
10pm

Atlas seemed detached from the conversations around him until he tapped Skunk’s partner Urbil in the head. “Stop the car….now.”

Snake snarled. “What the hell for?”

“I gotta go to the bathroom?” Atlas said. They all laughed. “No…I’m going to fly ahead and soften the building up so we can get back quicker.”

Skunk signaled for the car to stop. “Good idea. We’ll see you there.”

Atlas ran off down the road, leaped into the air, flew a mile then flew around at full speed back down the highway.

Kamasaya Iron works

Astro was struggling violently but slowly losing what energy he had when Atlas came flying through a transom and landed beside the steel welding table. He said nothing as he felt for the catch that held Astro’s chest closed.

“You….you came back?” Astro asked.

“Shut up. Your voice annoys me.” Atlas replied. He opened the chest plate to see the bomb resting atop Astro’s atomic power unit.

“I was right…you do care.”

“Didn’t I tell you to shut up?” Atlas said smirking. “In case you didn’t know it you have about ten pounds of explosive in your chest and the timer is seriously short.”

Astro hummed. “So why did you…”

“No reason. I just figured out how much my life would suck without entertainment.” Atlas worked quickly to cut the magnetic trip device, a few wires and the main trip circuits for the bomb.

“Oh…” Astro said. “How much time…”

“Shut up…I did say shut up right? You want me to let the bomb go off don’t you.” Atlas pulled another wire and blew a sigh of relief as the ticker stopped at 7 seconds. “I never did this before.”

“I’m not complaining.” Astro replied.

“YIPE!” Atlas suddenly ripped the bomb from Astro’s chest and threw it into the air where it exploded violently! He jumped atop Astro to shield him from the flying debris raining down from above.

“Uh…I thought you stopped it?” Astro asked. Atlas pushed himself up, armed his laser finger and pointed it at Astro’s head.

“You’re lucky I’m feeling generous.” The red bot said as he cut away Astro’s restraints and backed off to let him sit up.

“Thanks.” Astro said. “A sudden change of heart? Impressive.”

Atlas walked up and poked Astro in the chest. “There is no change. I still don’t like humans having any power and I don’t like your wishy washy puppy dog ways in being nice to them. But like I said, without you around my life would probably be miserable. I’m…willing to be a little patient.”

Atlas turned around and looked back at Astro. “Perhaps I could trust you not to chase me down and turn me in. I would…I would welcome us having private talks every now and then. I suddenly found debating with you…a little less lonely.”

Astro smiled. “So you’re going back to Skunk I guess?”

“The Prefectoral Reserve. He should be there in a few minutes. You still have time to catch him.”

Astro watched Atlas fly off, leaving him alone for a moment before he too took off after Skunk.

Prefectoral reserve
1am

Skunk slapped a magazine into his pulse rifle and walked into the open door of the Prefectoral Reserve. “Where is that bot? Hey Atlas! Where the heck are you!”

The three gangsters stood still inside the reception area of the reserve until someone stood with them in the dark whistling and snapping his fingers. “I’m right here. How about a little light?!”

The room exploded in brilliant white, blinding the three men. “What are you doing! Shut that stupid light off!”

“Oh no….the only lights going out is you three jerks!” Astro scooped up Urbil, gave him a wedgie and threw him head fist into a nearby trashcan!

“YOU LITTLE BRAT!” Skunks larger partner Big Gulch screamed as he threw a punch. Astro blocked it by, grabbed Gulch by his belt and tossed him through the ceiling where two Delta Patrol bots grabbed him by the shoulders!

“Now! Come here Skunk…didn’t you know attempted destruction of a robot was a felony?” Astro was grinning from ear to ear. “I think you deserve special treatment.”

Skunk snap aimed his rifle only to have the barrel torn off by Astro’s teeth. “Hey…that’s good quality metal.” The boy bot said as he snatched up Skunk and flew him out through a skylight.

“Let me go! LET ME GO! You can’t kill me you little punk!” Skunk screamed as he kicked in Astro’s arms.

“Kill you? Oh no I’m gonna do far worse than that.” Astro said as he flew Skunk into a candy factory, dunked him in syrup, then to a pillow factory where he dunked him into a storage bin of goose feathers!

The desk Sergeant on night duty at the Metro-City police HQ got the laugh of his life when Astro dropped Skunk ,feathers and all, on the floor. “Hi, I brought you a chicken.”

Skunk snarled back. “Mark my words you little jerk! You’ll regret doing this!”

“I will? Tell it to the tabloids when they get the photo copies.”

“YOU LITTLE CREEP!”

Institute of science
Morning

The two boys stood overlooking a group of recruit scientist working on a few robots on the main shop floor. Astro had to snatch the laughing Reno before he tumbled over the rail he was sitting on after he’d been laughing his head off for the last 5 minutes.

“Oh you are cruel!” Reno said smiling. “Tar and feathers? He’s going to put a contract on your head!”

Astro shrugged. “One of how many? See me shaking in my boots?”

“And Atlas? Anything from him?”

“No.” Astro replied with a slight smile. “He said before he left that he didn’t want his life to become boring. I have a feeling things here in the city will be crazy for some time to come.”

Reno shook his head. “I better invest in crutches.”

Both boys laughed their heads off, getting curses and calls for quiet from the technicians below them.

Abandoned hotel leo
Morning

Atlas was laughing…not just a chuckle but a full blown gut buster! He looked at the newspaper again, laughed again and sat on the torn up bed smiling happily.

“You do have the talents Astro, I’ll give you that.” Atlas crushed the paper with a wild grin. “I can be patient…till the day we both rule the world together.”

Atlas tossed the paper aside and stood by the open window of the room watching the morning sun come up. "Eventually....you'll come to see my way as being the best. Till then, watch out puppy dog."

The end

[Dragonrider1227]

I have an idea of Astro getting addicted to video games but I havn't written it yet.

[fafner]

Hmmmm... Astro addicted to "Astroboy: Omega Factor" should be interesting

[Latu]

dang.......

thats a long story...... :wacko:

[dannavy85]

You think that's bad? I write Gatchaman fictions too and the longest took 6 months and 364 pages.

[Latu]

I didnt say it was bad

[Danny]

Originally posted by dannavy85@Nov 25 2004, 12:37 AM
You think that's bad? I write Gatchaman fictions too and the longest took 6 months and 364 pages.

Mate, that was a really good read! I was not totally up with all the '04 series components as to be honest I have only watched like 5 episodes, and did not really like it all that much. After 20 years of the 80's series it was just far too different for me to appreciate. The story you told here tho was really impressive. You really captured the .. the.. "angst" of Atlas remarkably. The internal struggle between his high level learning AI and the core programming routines was so well done. I really felt bad for the termoil inside the little bot.

If there is some way of getting to read your Gatchaman Fic then I would really appreciate it. I worshipped "Battle of the Planets" when I was but a wee lad and did not even hear of Gatchaman until I was in my 20's.

I could tell you now tho that 364 pages in ONLY six months is still a remarkable achievement. It is obvious that you have a firm grip on what it is you want to get across when you write, however, so for someone with such obviously strong vision then 6 months for what most would call a "novella" could be a good streach of time.

As you can tell from that last sentance / paragraph ( <_< ) I am a hopeless writer, but I can recognise talent when I see it. You, my friend, most definately have it.

[dannavy85]

Well I'm not into the Daichi aspect of the 03 series, though I like how they build this new Atlas up with the same angst.

I wish Atlas Boy did go beyond the 80's pilot episodes, he would have made a serious and sometimes hillarious counter clash to Astro like Keralu Mauldi does to the 80's remake of Jungle Taitei "Kimba"

You got this abused and confused robot who on one hand hates humans because of Guies and Skunks vile abuse but doesn't want to harm them only serve as an overly protective overload and everything he wants to do has good intentions with bad executions and then you have this slobberly over-jelously towards Astro and half the time, like Keralu, Atlas Boy ends up swearing, cursing and saving his dispised alter-ego...

Why? Because of loneliness. Atlas Boy lives by himself, has no friends and Kamei-da of robots forbid he ever allow the only robot he can talk to too suffer some terrible demise.

I like writing...takes the extra time off these long underway deployments with the Navy and it's good for the mind as well.

[Danny]

Who or what is Keralu? Also, what is "Kamei-da".

I have only just seen the Atlas-Boy episodes for the first time on the 80's Collection extras DVD, and BOY was their ommission a travesty. Altho I understand the nature of protecting child viewers from assumed potentially damaging imagery I can not help but feel totally robbed of this powerful introduction to this recurring character.

I ask again here. Is there a way I could possibly read your Gatchaman fanfic? My only reference to it will be my memories of BotP from over 20 years ago, but I would still quite like to see how you handle another show. Especially if its done as well as the examples you have shown us here in the forums.