Astro turned around in bed, unable to sleep because of what had just happened that day. He had saved Reno's family, but now he had to accept Hamegg's games, and he knew Hamegg was the last person he could trust.

He had promised a spectacle, but something told him Hamegg would have some trick up his sleeve. And there was no guarantee that, even if he survived, Hamegg would let him go; maybe he would lock him away or stun him. Astro had to go there with reinforcements. But he couldn't tell his friends. Astro knew that they would prevent him from going at all costs. And that would put the circus at risk; he had to find a way to tell them once he was inside. But how? He couldn't use the communicator since then; Dad and Dr. Elefun would realize what he was up to, and right now, worrying his dad was the last thing he wanted to do, not to mention that he would discover that his son had lied to him to get back to the he Surface. Dad would kill him.

Astro laughed, thinking that Dad would better dismantle him before Hamegg.

Someone knocked on the window and brought him out of his thoughts. He looked outside and saw that Hamegg's drones were there. He got up, narrowing his eyebrows, and went to open the window.

He didn't say anything and just stared at the red eyes. He knew they had cameras that must be transmitted directly to Hamegg. The drone made a sound, and its eyes began to project onto the wall. Astro went to see what it was about a map of the Surface, with a dot marking a place at the southern ends.

"So that's where you're hiding," he thought.

He turned around to see the drones; they stopped projecting, but it didn't matter. Another advantage of being a robot is that everything is recorded in his memory, whether he wants it or not.

"At midnight," Hamegg's voice came through one of the drones, "see my generosity that I grant you one day to say goodbye to your loved ones."

"Very well. I'll be there," Astro said to the machines with a frown. He wouldn't let them see his fear.

"Good boy - or should I say?" The drone's spotlight moved closer to him, "Good machine."

He laughed maniacally, and the laughter multiplied in all the drones, but none affected Astro. Hamegg could annoy him all he wanted, but he would never give in.

"Don't be late, or the video will reach Tawashi before you can say Robot Games."

"I always keep my promises."

Hamegg did not add more, and the drones began flight back to the base. Astro followed them with his gaze until they disappeared from his vision; he sighed and went to sit on the bed again, lying down.

Memories of the arena returned to his mind, how he felt so… exposed being in the middle of all those people, the disappointed look of his friends, the clamor of the crowd for a bath of blood… or oil in this case. Astro felt nauseous, well... something like that...

"Ah!" He exclaimed as he sat up. Whenever he felt emotions like those, he wondered if it was him feeling them or if they were simply a memory of Toby. And the second made him feel like a simple copy, and he hated that. He didn't want to be Tobio. He wanted to be Astro.

He shook his head. He was getting off-topic; he had to focus on escaping from Hamegg without harming Reno and his family. Since telling his family and friends was not an option, he needed a plan B.

He lay down while he reviewed all his options.

"How do I achieve it without involving them directly? I mean, eventually, I want them to get involved but -"

He sat up feeling enlightened. When he reviewed all his options, he found someone who could help him without immediately destroying the plan. It was so clear that he felt a little bad for leaving him until the end.

But if he survived, he would make it up to him.

Now that he had a start, he could begin to develop the rest of the plan.

...

It was difficult for Astro to sleep since he was excited to execute his idea. It was risky, but he hoped it would work, otherwise -

He would have to give his all in the arena.

After waking up and having breakfast with Dad, he told him that that day, the Sky Riders would help at the orphanage: collect, clean, and change the oldest things, and that he wanted to help them. Tenma seemed a little worried, still upset about the circus incident. But Astro used his puppy face, and Tenma relented, saying it was fine. He just wanted him to come back before nightfall.

Astro nodded and hugged him, telling him that he would do it. After all, he planned to return and sneak out to the arena, but before that, he had to get everything ready.

So now he was heading towards the orphanage; at least in that part, he had not lied. One thing was clear: he wanted to leave Reno out of all this. He had already caused him and his family too many problems, and it was better to leave them alone.

When he saw the building, Astro descended toward it and landed. Luckily, no one else had arrived, nor were they outside, so he could go unnoticed...

Someone lunged at him, knocking him to the ground, and began licking his face.

"No! Trashcan, stop! Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha, you tickle me!" he said between laughs.

The robot dog barked with encouragement while he licked him, and no wonder they hadn't seen each other for a long time. Astro laughed while petting him on the head.

"I miss you too."

Trashcan got off him but happily barked as he jumped to the sides. Astro smiled; he knew he could trust him.

"Good boy. I need you to do me a favor."

The dog stopped and cocked his head, Astro moved closer to him.

"At midnight, I need you to take the police to this address," he whispered in his ear, then he looked to his sides; there was no one else, so he quickly drew on the ground with his finger the direction of the arena.

Trashcan studied the map, and after a few seconds, he looked at the boy.

"Can you do it?"

Trashcan barked affirmatively. Astro smiled.

"You mustn't show it to Zane, the twins, or any of the Sky Riders, much less Cora, do you understand?"

The dog nodded.

"Good boy," Astro answered, patting him on the head.

Trashcan closed his eyes and allowed himself to be pampered.

"Well, bud, I better go and-"

"Astro?" Ken asked.

The boy stopped dead; he believed that the Sky Riders would arrive later. Astro slowly turned around, and there they were, accompanied by The Collectors, all carrying blankets, clothes, pillows, toys, books, etc.

Ken and Cora were in the lead, boxes in their arms.

"Oh… hi guys!" Astro waved at them. This wasn't part of the plan.

"Astro, where have you been?" Zane asked, putting down his box. "We've been trying to reach you since yesterday."

"Yeah, we thought you would help us take out our old things," Shibugaki added with some resentment; after all, he was carrying three boxes, and it looked like they were going to fall.

Ken grimaced and elbowed him lightly, which made Shibugaki almost lose his balance. Luckily, he managed to hold the boxes, and then he sent a murderous look at Ken, but he either didn't notice or didn't care.

"Oh, right!" Astro continued, scratching his head. "Sorry guys, something came up at the Ministry, and Dad needs my help!"

"Is everything alright?" Cora asked, worried.

"Nothing I can't solve."

Astro looked over his shoulder; the map was still there. Trashcan shifted his eyes from the drawing to him. Astro looked at him with pleading eyes and whispered:

"Please."

Trashcan rolled his eyes; he didn't know why Astro wanted to keep so much secrecy, especially considering what had happened last time. But he trusted him, so he erased the map with his paws.

Astro sighed in relief and looked back at his friends; they all looked worried about him.

"Astro… are you feeling alright?" Tamao asked, "You look tired."

Sludge and Widget nodded.

"Yes, yes, it's just that..." he replied, downplaying his situation, "Look guys, I know I said I would help you, but Dad and Doctor Elefun are reviewing some things, and they asked me to help them, so I have to go."

That seemed to convince them, or at least most of them, since Cora and Ken didn't seem so sure.

"Oh, if that's the case, you better not keep them waiting," said Tamao.

Astro smiled in relief.

"Thank you."

"Yes, and don't worry about anything here," Zane continued, "we'll take care of it."

After that, Astro went on to say goodbye to all of them. When he got with Shibugaki, he seemed to still be upset, but in the end, he rolled his eyes and shook his hand.

"Go save the world."

"Thanks, mate."

After saying goodbye, he flew away. The first part of his plan had been resolved, but he still had a lot to do, and time was running out.

"Well, we better get started, without Astro, this will be a little more difficult," Cora decreed once the robot disappeared into the clouds.

There were complaints and boos, but they soon gathered their things and went inside, although Cora and Kenichi stayed behind.

"Ken, didn't you notice something strange with Astro?"

The boy nodded.

"He seemed a little nervous. Maybe things at the Ministry are more serious than what he told us."

"Do you think he was telling the truth?"

Ken shrugged.

"You know he has been depressed about the Metropolis thing. Maybe he feels discouraged and wants to be alone. I dunno."

Cora wasn't so sure that that was the case. She didn't see Astro sad or blue. Something was worrying him. Plus, he hadn't adopted that attitude since his first days on The Surface, when he hid the fact that he was a robot…

"Something's wrong," Cora thought. Astro was hiding something, and it couldn't be anything good.

"Maybe you're right," she said.

Despite everything, she didn't want to worry the rest of the group, and she knew that even Zane and the twins saw Ken as the leader, rivaling her leadership. She didn't want a fight of egos because it would be useless. Sometimes, she just took the reins, and sometimes Kenichi did. But Ken had enough presence that if his spirits went down, everyone else would notice, and the same would happen to them. The best would be not to spread panic.

"When he's ready to tell us, he will."

Ken smiled as he entered. Cora was about to follow him when she heard Trashcan bark. She stopped and looked at the robot dog.

"What's wrong, buddy?"

Trashcan jumped while pointing to the ground where Astro had been. Cora narrowed an eyebrow and went there; even if they had passed over it, erasing it quite a bit, it was clear that someone had drawn something, and it looked like a map. The girl looked at the robot.

Trashcan began to write on the ground with his paws, raising some dirt. Cora covered her eyes with her arm. When Trashcan finished, the girl uncovered herself, and the message she saw did not make her feel better:

"Astro asked me to take the police to this address at midnight, it can't be anything good."

"You're right, Trashcan. This can't be anything good."

Astro was in trouble, and she wasn't gonna leave him alone.

...

Reno had been trying to concentrate on his experiments all day. After all the drama of yesterday, Pannacotta had decided that they would take the day off; no one contradicted him since none had recovered from the shock, so the teenager thought about taking advantage of the time on his things. But he soon found out that it would be impossible.

As much as he wanted to convince himself that things were fine, he knew that Hamegg was not trustworthy, the deal that Astro reached was anything but beneficial for him, and Reno feared his friend could suffer.

"People who treat robots like that are the worst," he thought. He hated that there were humans who only saw robots as tools, and it hurt him to think Astro could be in the hands of one.

"I can't stay here with my arms crossed. I need to make sure Astro is safe."

If the circus had taught him anything, family always supported each other. Although he had only known him for two days, Astro was his friend, and he had to help him. He was willing to sacrifice everything for the circus.

So Reno left his room and headed for the exit; if he talked to the right people, he could discover what Hamegg was up to. When he left the tent, he met Cupcake and Pannacotta, disguised as a human.

"Reno, where are you heading?" His mother asked.

"Yesterday left me a little worried. I want to walk to clear my head."

He expected to appeal more for his parents' permission, but they nodded in agreement.

"Go ahead, a little air will do you good," was Pannacotta's response.

"Really?"

"Yes, even you have to get out of that cave some time," the ringmaster finished.

"Hey!" Reno exclaimed, raising his fists.

Cupcake laughed, and Reno's face softened.

"Thank you. I'll be back in the evening."

With that, he left. He had an investigation to begin.

"At least we didn't have to trick him into going out anymore," Cupcake said quietly, looking away.

"Yes, you are right about that."

...

Astro's next stop was the Ministry of Science, knowing Hamegg he would make a great show, and if there was one thing Astro didn't want to give him, it was his dignity. At this point, the boy was already used to undressing for fights or that his clothes would be destroyed during the encounter, and although he was losing more and more the shame, the truth is that he did not want an audience that hated robots to see him half-naked, including Hamegg, since something told him that the host would take the opportunity to make all kinds of mockery at him. So Astro wanted to see if the Ministry had armor or clothing to withstand the most violent environments.

And if he survived the night, he would never have to be half-naked in public again.

"It will be like a superhero suit," he thought joyfully.

When he entered the building, some people at the reception greeted him. Astro waved back and went to the elevator.

"Okay. Dad told me Doctor Elefun asked to see him at his house today; that gives me time to design my clothes before he arrives."

"Astro?"

Every circuit in his body froze; he turned around to find his father entering through a door that closed behind him.

"Oh- Hi, Dad!" He greeted him.

"What is he doing here?! He should be with the doctor!" Astro told himself.

"I thought you were going to Doctor Elefun's house."

"That was the plan, but he called me at the last minute to cancel. He said something came up, and he had to attend it."

"Of course."

"And what are you doing here? Weren't you supposed to be with your friends at the orphanage?"

"Yes. I just came from there, we were fixing the house when-"

"You don't have to lie completely. It worked with your friends, just change the facts a little."

"I saw the piles of garbage, and I remembered my fight with Frankenstein. I realized that a robot zombie could appear at any moment," he looked at his father; it seemed like he was convincing him. "And I have to admit that I'm getting tired of ending up naked every time I have to fight."

Tenma nodded his head while looking away. For long, Astro had had some questions about certain decisions his father made during his creation, such as the machine guns in the butt- and the underwear that was part of him. But he didn't want the situation to become more uncomfortable.

"So," he continued, making circles on the ground with his boot, "I wanted to see if there was anything at the Ministry that could help me."

He expected his father to ask more questions or to object, but luckily, Tenma just smiled as he approached.

"Astro- you thought exactly the same thing as me!"

The boy wide open his eyes.

"Really?"

"Yes! It's not practical you have to undress every time an emergency comes up, or to buy you new clothes every week."

Astro cocked his head, that last comment made it seem like his dad was more concerned about his wallet than his son's privacy, but he'd let it slide.

"Come with me to the floor 4."

They got on the elevator, and they arrived at a room that was similar to where they had scanned him after his fight with the Peacekeeper, only on the other side, there was a mannequin with the same shape and height as Astro, with a black suit on, which appeared to be made of spandex, that covered the entire body except for the hands and head.

"How long have you been working on this?" Astro asked.

"Since The Day of the Living Dead," Tenma answered, "it was gonna be a birthday gift, but you're right; we need to be prepared for anything."

"You have no idea, Dad," Astro thought.

"It is made of a material that resists fire and high temperatures; you would have to enter the center of the earth to melt it," Tenma continued, "it will also resist hits and rips, it can withstand even the impact of a missile."

Astro smiled; it would have been useful against Frankenstein.

"I also thought about what you told me about your encounter with Hamegg."

Astro froze; did he know that? How could Dad know? He didn't remember to leave any clues. Did Dad have a chip that allowed him to follow all his steps?

"And how he made you compete in the arena."

Astro sighed; Dad was referring to the last Robot Games.

"The suit is not a conductive material, so no taser or force field will hurt you again- the field will still hold you, but you will no longer be electrocuted."

There was some regret in Tenma's voice. Astro felt it must be because he allowed Hamegg to capture him, and perhaps also because…

"Em- Dad?"

"Yes?"

"Why did you fire Hamegg?"

He had already heard Hamegg's side of the story; they were intimidated by his ideas, but after everything he did to him, something told Astro there was much more.

Tenma sighed while looking at his son.

"Hamegg was a brilliant scientist; he could build anything, even from scrap," Astro could hear a certain admiration in his Dad's voice, "but- he was too greedy, he only saw machines as a means to make money, that not only included robots but also weapons such as missiles, bombs, drones, tanks, Hamegg did not know ethics, he just wanted to fill his pockets with money."

Astro nodded, that sounded like Hamegg.

"At that time, the tensions with Metropolis and Marine City were at their peak after the Persian empire was destroyed. And the military was beginning to show interest in the Ministry. Elefun and I were afraid of what a person like Hamegg could do, promising them a weapon or something like that. We even feared he could do something to become the director of the Ministry, so we decided that firing him would be best since his values were not the same as those of the Ministry- But in the end- I did make a weapon for the military. And we all know what happened next."

Tenma sighed; he felt wrong for everything he had done, vanishing Astro out of his house, allowing Hamegg to use him as a gladiator, hypocritically firing Hamegg. He had made so many mistakes. Astro noticed his low spirits, so he approached him and put a hand on his Dad's shoulder.

"Hey- despite everything, it helped me meet my friends, right?"

It wasn't the best argument, but he hoped it made his father feel better. Tenma shrugged.

"I guess you're right about that."

He still didn't sound very convinced. Astro thought it would be best to return to the matter of the suit. He looked at it and- it wasn't bad, but it was too simple. He was sure he could make some changes to it.

"Dad, can I?"

"Oh, of course," he replied; apparently, that had made him forget about the Hamegg business.

Astro approached the control panel and moved some controls. Above the mannequin hung several robotic arms, each with a different tool for making garments. Astro saw the suit; he didn't like that it was only one color, it took away from his identity. Despite all, the green on his belt wasn't bad, and he wanted to keep it; since he already had the black on, maybe he could add a little more red.

He pressed some buttons, and a mechanical arm descended to the clothes. Astro selected the paint option, then the color green; a small opening came out of the arm, a space opened on the panel, and a remote control entered. The boy took it and pressed the button in the middle, and the paint came out; Astro moved it, painting a set of curved lines along the legs, waist, and chest on each side. When he finished, he added a green circle shaped like a buckle.

He smiled proudly, looked at his father, and pointed to the suit.

"What do you think?"

Tenma smiled; he had to admit that that was one of the things he liked most about Astro: he improvised, thought outside the box, and was creative. Toby, on the other hand- was more of the type that followed the rules and respected the procedure, like him. And Tenma knew that he shouldn't compare his children and that Toby would always be in his heart. It was just that… he liked the variety between his sons.

"I admit it looks better, but we can still improve it."

Astro smiled knowingly.

Tenma approached and began to check the colors they had.

"I assume you want to keep your colors."

Astro nodded.

"Very well, we can add some red here."

Tenma moved the arms to the suit wrists and painted them the same red as Astro's boots. When he finished, some wristbands were sticking out. Astro opened his eyes; it was looking pretty cool.

"Do you think shoulder pads would look good?" Astro hated to admit it, but he was taking ideas from the "armor" they provided him in the Robot Games. After all, he didn't look so bad.

"We can try," replied an excited Tenma.

Tenma pressed more buttons, and two more arms came down with the shoulder pads, put them on, and painted them red.

"And I think I already know what the finishing touch could be," Tenma added.

Astro narrowed an eyebrow.

Tenma moved more buttons, and the arms returned to the ceiling and disappeared for a few minutes. Astro was left wondering what they could be doing, and then they returned with three red metal pieces. They took them to the suit chest and put them together as an A. The boy looked at his father.

"Every superhero needs a symbol."

Astro smiled.

A fourth arm came down; this one had a soldering iron on the tip, it joined the pieces, and when it was finished, they all returned to the ceiling, leaving the suit visible.

Astro thought it looked impressive; it could genuinely pass for one of those comic book superheroes, plus adding the A was a great touch. Tenma also seemed pleased by the work, one of father and son.

"It's great."

"Yes, yes it is," Tenma put his hands on the boy's shoulders and shook him playfully, "So what are you waiting for? Try it on."

He didn't have to repeat it.

Not only did it look great, but it also fit him perfectly. Astro already felt more confident and protected in it.

"I will never undress for a mission again, ever!"

Besides, he could show it off to all his friends- of course, if he survived.

"This is amazing! I love it!" He exclaimed as he threw himself into his dad's hug. "Thank you, Dad!"

Tenma was not prepared for such a reaction. Astro almost knocked him down, but he stood on his feet and returned the hug.

"And he held back. If he had wanted, he could have broken my back," he thought.

But he wouldn't ruin the moment. Tenma laughed and left his little boy on the ground.

"You're welcome, son. It's a gift."

Astro smiled.

"I'm gonna show it to my friends! I wanna hear what they think!"

"I'm sure they will love it."

Tenma smiled and accompanied him to the exit. On the way, several people turned to see Astro, and everyone was delighted by his suit. Astro smiled; for the first time, he liked that his clothing attracted attention.

"Go with care, Astro," Tenma told him when they were outside.

"Of course! I'll see you at home."

And he took off. Tenma followed him with his eyes always smiling until Astro disappeared, and then he returned inside. Meanwhile, Astro was beginning to feel guilty.

...

Reno had been asking several people if they had heard anything about any event, or if a rumor could be circulating on the streets, but no one knew anything. After almost an hour of interviewing everyone, he began to get tired.

"Maybe I am paranoid," he thought.

But he soon denied it.

"Hamegg is a monster. He ordered Astro something in return. I need to help him."

With that in mind, he entered an alley and analyzed what he could be doing wrong.

"Let's see, you've only asked at the market; maybe you should go to less busy areas. The slums might have the answer."

He hated those places; they were where the detractors of robots gathered. He always did his best to avoid them, but since no one knew anything here. He had to go into hell.

So, swallowing his pride, Reno went there. The slums were known to be dirtier; there was always garbage on the floor, graffiti on the walls, and parts of robots that were unlucky enough to encounter intolerant humans. They were streets that were not pleasant at all, especially for children, even so, he was not intimidated. Reno just put his hands in his pockets and continued walking without looking at anyone, although, he did put on his angriest face. He expected it to be intimidating, except that, according to Cupcake, he had the cutest face in the world.

"I hope you're wrong," he thought as he passed some homeless people who were drinking.

"Hey, carrottop! A coin?" One of them shouted at him.

Reno didn't respond and just kept walking; luckily, he could hear when he picked up the glass bottle. Reno crouched down in time, and the bottle went over his head, brushing a few hairs, and then it crashed on the ground.

"Fuck you, ginger minger!" The alcoholic shouted at him again.

Reno only quickened his pace. Despite everything, the unfortunate encounter had given him an idea, a few streets away, there was a seedy bar where the worst scum of the entire Surface gathered. There, he would surely find something.

The place was a building whose paint was falling off the walls, exposing the concrete, and several letters had fallen off the sign that announced the name; it read: Asa and illy.

Reno shook his head, this was gonna be ugly.

At the entrance, there was a muscular man as a guard. Reno advanced towards him with his head down; maybe he could trick him, but as soon as he arrived, the man stopped him with one hand.

"This is not a daycare, child. Get out of here."

Reno looked at him with an angry face.

"I'm eighteen!" He said, raising his voice.

But the man just laughed.

"Don't make me laugh; go home with your mommy," he mocked.

Reno gritted his teeth and roared, but he walked away, it was not convenient to attract attention, so he walked until the man stopped caring. Reno looked over his shoulder; the guard looked to the other side. The boy ran towards the alley that was next to the bar. There must be another way to enter.

He pressed his back against the wall and stood still, waiting to hear footsteps, but nothing was heard; the guard was no longer interested in him. Reno sighed in relief, moved away from the wall, and looked up; there was an open window where smoke was coming out.

Reno smiled; there it was, and best of all, there was a mountain of beer boxes. The boy jumped on one of them and then to the other until he reached the window, there Reno put his ear to the corner. Some voices were heard inside.

"I'm telling you, boss, Hamegg says he has something special planned for midnight."

Reno wide opened his eyes.

"I knew it."

"Really?" A cold voice asked, "What kind of special?"

"Some spectacle, he says it will be the year's event."

A mockingly laugh.

"I heard he's bringing the Robot Games back."

Reno's heart stopped. He hoped he would never have to hear the name of that barbarity again.

"Really?" Laugh, "I wouldn't mind seeing some robots destroying themselves."

More laughs.

"Hey! We can bet! Who's fighting?"

"Astro."

"No!" Reno thought. He should have known Hamegg was doing all this just so he could destroy his friend, and he was going to make a spectacle of his death. Reno made a fist and was about to enter but stopped; no matter how much the boy wanted to hit them, Reno had to control himself. He was at a complete disadvantage, and if something happened to him, not only would he not be able to help Astro, but his family would suffer his loss. And he didn't want them to go through that.

So, controlling himself, he settled back into his initial position and paid more attention.

"Oh, really? How did Hamegg get that piece of junk to come here?"

"Who cares? What matters is that it will be a bloodbath! Have you seen what that robot can do? It will destroy others!"

"Don't be so sure. I heard that Hamegg has a secret weapon, a new kind of machine. He has invested all his talent to that thing to destroy Astro."

"I want to see that!"

"I'll bet three hundred on whatever Hamegg has prepared!"

"I bet five hundred on Astro!"

Laughter, boos, and banging on the table.

"Beasts," Reno thought angrily.

Astro had gotten into that mess to help him, and now he would do the same for him. Whatever Hamegg had on his hands, Reno would make sure the con artist didn't get away with it.

"Don't worry, Astro. I'm with you."

Another hour passed until the individuals left the bar. Reno jumped onto the roof and ran to the edge of it. The customers got into a limo and left. Reno backed up a little, started running, and jumped off the building towards the next one; he made a twirl to land, and without wasting time, he resumed his run and jumped again towards the other roof. Reno went from building to building while following the limousine.

At one point, the ceilings were ending, luckily, there were still utility poles. Reno jumped towards them, and when he landed, he did not stop since if the boy did, he would surely fall, or the cables would succumb to his weight.

"I love growing up in a circus," he thought happily.

The limousine was fast, but with his skills, Reno could keep up with it.

"I will chase you to the end of the world if I must! No one will harm you, Astro, not tonight, not ever!" Reno thought with determination.

...

Astro hadn't slept; the time was getting closer and closer, and he couldn't rest. He was too nervous.

So instead, he got ready, made sure his battery was 100%, and charged another one just in case. Plus some extra protection, he put them in his pants pockets.

As he promised his father, he returned home after they designed the suit; they had dinner, where they laughed, and Astro told him about the reactions of his friends. Although they were invented, he was sure they were close to reality; when they finished, Astro told him that he loved him and said goodbye to Orrin, and then he went into his room and left the last details ready.

Among them was writing a letter to Dad, where he explained everything; so at least his father wouldn't be left with doubt in the worst-case scenario. Astro closed it, asking that if something happened to him, to please protect Reno and his family; it was the last thing he could do for them.

He left it on his bed and sat waiting; when the clock struck 11:30 p.m. Astro knew that the moment had come. He put on his suit and opened the window; he sighed as he looked at the door one last time.

"Wish me luck," with that said, he jumped and went to face his destiny.

...

Cora hadn't slept either; she didn't know what trouble Astro was in or why he hadn't told them anything, which made her blood boil. But they would solve that matter later, so she spent the entire afternoon worried.

She already wanted it to be midnight to get into action. If she went and asked Astro, he wouldn't tell her; the best thing would be to go and see it with her own eyes.

So she stayed in bed tossing and turning, waiting for the time. When eleven finally struck, she got up; the girl hadn't even put on her pajamas and took Ken's skateboard out of the closet. Cora had asked to borrow it when they finished working at the orphanage. Of course, the boy lent it to her without problems.

Cora opened her window, took out the skateboard, and threw it, but it started to float, and she jumped on top. The girl wayed a little but managed to retain her balance.

"Alright, Astro. If we get out of this one- I'm gonna kill you!"

Settling on it, she leaned forward, and the skateboard moved with her; controlling the blessed toy, she flew to where The Surface began. There, Trashcan was waiting for her just as they had agreed, the dog saw her and started barking with happiness.

"I know, I know, but we must hurry. Time is money."

Traschan nodded and started running. Cora followed him; the closer they got to the place marked by Astro, the worse and worse she felt. A discomfort in her stomach bothered her.

"I've got a bad feeling about this," she thought.

...

The seats were ready, most of the customers were already arriving, he had his drones charging them and telling them where to sit, that was good; so he could take care of his guest of honor.

He put on his showman cape and his hat, one of the few things he had managed to rescue from the arena, from his glorious old life.

"But it doesn't matter. Tonight, Astro and Tenma will pay for all, and then maybe I will even conquer the Ministry of Science!" He thought, evilly clasping his hands.

Once dressed, he went to the back door and opened it, giving way to a deserted street with only a trash can on one side and the sound of the wind.

"It shouldn't be long in coming," he thought, and he wasn't wrong.

Lights illuminated him and then approached him, revealing a limousine, the vehicle parked in front of him, the driver's door opened, and a teenager with sunglasses got out.

"Young Rock Holmes, welcome," Hamegg said, bowing.

Rock didn't say anything, he just walked to the passenger door and opened it, then stood aside while his guest got out. Hamegg crouched even lower.

"It is a true honor to have you in my humble abode, oh great Duke Red."

In front of him stood the Duke Red, wearing the same suit he wore when he visited Tenma, only this was black, with a rose in the jacket pocket, and was accompanied by a black cape.

"You can get up," the Duke said as he looked at Hamegg.

Hamegg sat up; from his angle, the Duke looked even more intimidating.

"If I'm not mistaken, Mr. Hamegg, you promised me a spectacle."

Hamegg nodded, and the Duke nodded.

"So, what are we waiting for?"