Astrosaurs 7, page 4
“Travel through the space tunnel again?” boggled Iggy. “In that heap of old dung?”
Arx shrugged. “If we go through it from this side, we should come out back in the Vegetarian Sector, near Trimuda. And from there, we might just reach DSS HQ ahead of Attila.”
“But the Sauropod was almost destroyed by the journey,” Gipsy reminded him. “What chance do we stand in that rust-bucket?”
“A small chance,” Arx admitted. “A very small chance. An extremely small chance. A—”
“Yes, yes, yes,” Admiral Rosso interrupted. “But it’s our only chance of stopping the dino-droids.” He looked at each of the astrosaurs in turn. “This will be the most dangerous mission of our lives – and the most important.”
“We’re with you, sir,” said Teggs. He gave his crew a crooked smile. “Let’s do it!”
It didn’t take long to get the little ship ready for blast-off. And it didn’t take long to find the entrance to the space tunnel.
The crew waited in grim silence as Iggy steered them back towards the dark, sinister hole in space . . .
Chapter Ten
DESTINATION: DINO-DROIDS!
Soon, the rusty old shuttle was shaking and quaking like a jelly in an earthquake. On and on they went, picking up speed. The mouth of the space tunnel glowed with a strange, alien power as it drew them closer.
Suddenly a huge lump of rock shot past the ship’s windscreen.
“Uh-oh!” shouted Teggs over the roar of the engines. “Looks like some stray meteors are being dragged through too!”
“That’s all we need,” groaned Gipsy. “If we’re not squished into space junk by the space tunnel, a meteor will squash us instead!”
“Maybe not,” said Arx. “In fact, a meteor might be just what we need. If we can only fly inside one, all that rock would help protect us as we go through the hole.”
“Like a natural shield,” Rosso agreed. “Good thinking, Arx!”
“First we have to find the right sort of meteor,” Teggs warned them as the control room began to glow with heat.
“There’s one!” bellowed Gipsy. She pointed to a huge jagged rock. It was filled with holes like a Swiss cheese.
“Great. Now we just have to fly inside it.” Iggy took a deep breath. “Hold on tight, everyone!”
“We already are!” Gipsy cried as the ship lurched from side to side.
“Hold on even tighter, then!”
With incredible skill, Iggy steered the shaking ship into a deep split within the tumbling meteor. Then, with a horrible scraping sound like claws against a chalkboard, they came to a halt.
“We’re jammed inside the split!” Iggy reported. “Right in the middle of the meteor.”
“Good work, Iggy!” Teggs yelled. “All right, everyone, get ready and hope for the best. We’re passing back through the space tunnel!”
Time slowed down. Every second seemed to last for hours. The ship stretched like old knicker elastic. Through the windows, they saw the rock glowing red-hot, then white. The controls inside started to melt . . .
Until finally – WHOOOSH! – the ship shot out the other side. The white-hot rock of their meteor shield crumbled away to space dust, sprinkling in their wake like a comet’s tail.
“We did it!” Rosso shouted, and everyone cheered and whooped for joy.
“Good work, crew,” Teggs agreed. “Arx, where are we now?”
“Flying away from Trimuda like a stone from a slingshot,” the triceratops told him. “A lot of these controls aren’t working . . . but I think we’re on our way to DSS HQ!”
Teggs jumped in the air. “Brilliant!”
Gipsy nodded nervously. “But will we be in time?”
The journey seemed to last for ever. Gipsy kept trying the radio to see if she could send out a warning, but it was beyond repair. Only the engines were still working, just barely – spluttering like dragons with whooping cough. Luckily there was no shortage of fuel – Admiral Rosso hadn’t “been” since he was kidnapped, and he soon made up for lost time.
Finally, Gipsy gave an excited shout. “DSS HQ! Look, it’s straight ahead!”
“But the Sauropod has just arrived too,” said Teggs grimly.
They could see their beautiful egg-shaped ship gliding gently into HQ’s docking bay.
“We must stop Attila and his evil droids from leaving the ship,” cried Rosso. “If they get into HQ, they will wreck the meeting!”
Iggy tapped the side of his snout knowingly. “Lucky we built that secret back door into the Sauropod, eh, Captain?”
Gipsy and Arx stared at Teggs in surprise. He shrugged and smiled. “I had it fitted in case we ever lost our keys.”
Iggy zoomed right up to the egg-shaped ship and bumped against its bottom three times. A flap opened up to allow them into the dung-torpedo store.
“Brilliant!” cried Arx.
But as they landed they heard a loud CLANG!
“The Sauropod has docked with HQ,” said Arx breathlessly. “We might not be in time to stop them!”
“We have to try,” said Teggs. “Gipsy, Admiral Rosso – head for the emergency exit and go straight to HQ. Explain to the VIDs what danger they’re in.” He nodded to Iggy and Arx. “As for you two – let’s get to the flight deck. It’s time to take on those dino-droids!”
Teggs led Arx and Iggy in a charge to the lifts, and bashed the button for the flight deck with the tip of his tail.
Iggy waggled his special jamming device. “I’ve been tinkering with this thing, and I think I’ve boosted the power.”
“Good,” said Teggs. “We need all the help we can get!”
The doors slid open the second they arrived, and the astrosaurs burst out onto the flight deck. The Teggs-droid looked up from the control pit. The Arx-droid span round in his chair. And Draxie hopped from foot to foot, spluttering in disbelief.
“You!” he cried. “How did you ever get here?”
Teggs smiled. “Well if you will leave space tunnels lying around . . . !”
The dimorphodon squawked in alarm and surprise – they thought they were seeing double!
“It’s all right, boys,” Teggs called. “You’ve been taken in by some diabolical dino-droids. We are the real astrosaurs!”
“Don’t listen to him,” squeaked Draxie. “They are fakes!”
“Switch on your gadget, Iggy,” cried Teggs. “We’ll prove it!”
Screeeeeeeeeeeeeee! A dreadful din started up from the jamming device. The eyes of the droids turned red and started to spin round and round. The dimorphodon scattered, screeching in alarm.
Gas nozzles emerged from the Arx-droid’s horns, just as Teggs had seen before. But the Teggs-droid had an altogether deadlier weapon to hand. Or rather, to tail. Its spiky tail split down the middle – to reveal a gigantic laser cannon!
“Look out!” bellowed Teggs, shoving Arx and Iggy to the ground as his double opened fire. A laser bolt sizzled over their heads and blew up the wall behind them.
“I landed on the jamming device!” wailed Iggy. “It’s broken!”
“Fix it, fast,” Teggs told him. “Arx, we must buy him some time!”
“Your time is up, Captain Teggs,” sneered Draxie. “Attila and the Rosso-droid are already on their way to the Pick-a-Planet meeting!”
Teggs frowned. “So where are your droids of Gipsy and Iggy?”
“Right behind you, Captain,” they chorused from inside the lift. The dino-droids’ eyes were blazing red.
Without the jamming device, how could they all be stopped?
Chapter Eleven
THE SHATTERING SHOWDOWN
Teggs whacked the Gipsy-droid on its oily hip, knocking it to the floor. Arx tried to charge at the Iggy-droid, but sparks of power burst from its claws, forcing him back.
The Gipsy-droid’s head-crest opened up and fired a mini-missile at Teggs. He dodged aside – but fell straight into the path of the Arx-droid. The robot lowered its three-horned head, ready to gas him . . .
In the nick of time, some daring dimorphodon flapped by and shoved cotton wool down into the deadly nozzles! The dino-droid’s eyes clouded over as the gas was forced back inside its body.
“Look out, Captain!” gasped the real Arx.
Teggs turned to find the Iggy-droid closing in, its electric claws outstretched. The Gipsy-droid was just behind it, aiming another missile.
And the Teggs-droid was coming to get him too, raising its terrifying tail cannon.
But at the last moment, just as his mirror image opened fire, Teggs dived into the control pit. The Iggy-droid was hit by the laser blast instead.
Its head exploded!
The robot’s body went out of control, and its electric claws dug into the Gipsy-droid. Crackles of red energy surrounded them both, scrambling their circuits. With an electronic burp, six missiles shot from the fake Gipsy’s forehead and the Arx-droid went up in smoke.
Only the Teggs-droid was left standing.
“Very clever, Captain,” sneered Draxie. “But your double is the deadliest of all.”
“It’s certainly the best-looking!” joked Teggs as the dino-droid bore down on him.
But by now, Arx had recovered. He charged into the dino-droid’s side, denting it badly. It staggered under the impact – straight into a tail-swipe from the real Teggs. Before the droid could react, Arx charged into it again, his mighty horns punching a hole in its metal hide. Then Sprite, the leader of the dimorphodon, flew right into the hole and started pecking at the dino-droid’s insides with his beak. The robot’s movements grew jerky and wild.
“Get out, Sprite!” Teggs yelled.
Sprite flapped out just in time. A few moments later – KA-BOOOM! – the dino-droid exploded into a billion bits.
“Whew!” said Teggs, wiping his brow. “That was close!”
“Not fair!” wailed Draxie as the other dimorphodon grabbed him with their beaks and claws and held him prisoner. “You may have got me – but you will never stop Attila!”
“We’ll see about that,” said Arx.
“I’ve fixed the jamming device,” Iggy reported.
“Then what are we waiting for?” cried Teggs, bundling into the lift. “Let’s move!”
Admiral Rosso and Gipsy charged through the broad, bright corridors of the real DSS HQ. Soon they ran into a group of ankylosaur guards, who stared at them in puzzlement.
“Hey, you!” Rosso peered down at the chief guard. “Have I passed by this way already?”
The chief guard gulped. “Er, yes, sir. About five minutes ago.” He scratched his head. “In fact, sir, you’re calling the Pick-a-Planet meeting to order right now!”
“Oh no!” bellowed Rosso. “Come on, Gipsy!”
They pushed past the guards and burst into the vast meeting room. Carnivores and plant-eaters alike jumped up in alarm and surprise.
“You!” gasped Attila, peeping out from behind the Rosso-droid.
“You’re all being tricked!” thundered the admiral. “I am the real Rosso! That imposter is a dino-droid – a mere machine!”
“I am not!” retorted Rosso’s dino-droid double. “Guards, arrest these intruders!”
Armed ankylosaurs swarmed into the room and grabbed hold of them.
“Let us go!” cried Gipsy. “You’ve got to believe us!”
“Pah!” Attila jumped on a table and waggled his silvery bum at her. “Why should we?”
“Because they’re telling the truth!” came a familiar voice from the doorway.
It was Teggs!
He pushed his way into the room, Arx and Iggy just behind him.
“Arrest these intruders too!” rumbled the Rosso-droid. “They’re nuts!”
“We’ll see about that,” said Iggy, switching on the jamming device. “This will prove that you’re a dino-droid!”
SCREEEEE! The noise from the machine was even louder than before. Ba-ba-bump! Zsh-zsh-WHIRRRRRR! At once, the Rosso-droid’s eyes began to burn flame-red and spin like crazy. It twitched and jerked like a puppet with tangled strings. Then, with a fizzling, sizzling sound, the robot started to melt like an ice cream on a hot day.
The meeting room grew even noisier with gasps of fear and amazement from the crowd.
“You see?” cried Arx. “It’s a fake. Iggy’s machine is jamming its metal mind!”
“What do you say to that, Attila?” Teggs challenged.
“Well, thanks a lot for spoiling my evil plans,” snarled Attila as the robot Rosso dissolved into a big, bubbling puddle. “But by the stunning stitching on my silver shorts – you’ll never get me!”
With that, the carnivore turned to run. But he couldn’t. He struggled to get away, but it was no good. The sticky remains of his dino-droid had glued his feet to the ground!
Iggy turned off the jamming device with a quiet chuckle. “Looks like we’re stuck with you, Attila!”
Everyone stared at the disco-dino in disbelief.
Then Rosso cleared his throat. “Right then, everybody. Let’s start this meeting again, shall we?” he said, as if nothing much had happened. “Guards, clear away that horrible splodgy mess, lock up Attila and fetch me a clean chair. There’s work to be done, planets to share out . . .” He smiled fondly at the Sauropod crew. “And many more adventures to be had.”
“Very true, sir.” Teggs nodded eagerly and licked his lips. “Once we’ve had a spot of breakfast, we’ll be on our way!”
“Oh no, you won’t,” Rosso retorted. “You will stay for a special victory feast! I’m going to award each of you a very special medal – the Order of the Righteous Reptile.”
Teggs gulped and stared around at his crew. “But . . . that’s the highest honour an astrosaur can receive!”
“You’ve earned it,” said the admiral firmly. Then he looked around at the startled VIDs staring on. “And for saving us all from a terrible space war, I think they’ve earned a round of applause too, don’t you?”
The plant-eaters burst into wild claw-clapping. Slowly, even the carnivores joined in. Iggy took a bow, and Gipsy curtseyed politely, while Teggs and Arx gave their stiffest dinosaur salutes. Attila glared at them as he was marched messily from the room.
“Well, that was a medal-winning adventure, all right,” Teggs declared as the applause went on and on. “And after a fabulous feast and forty winks, this righteous reptile will be ready for another one . . . double quick!”
THE END
About the Author
Born in 1971, Steve Cole spent a happy childhood in rural Bedfordshire being loud and aspiring to amuse. He liked books, and so went to the University of East Anglia to read more of them. Later on he started writing them too, with titles ranging from pre-school poetry to Young Adult thrillers (with more TV and film tie-ins than he cares to admit to along the way). In other careers he has been the editor of Noddy magazine, and an editor of fiction and nonfiction book titles for various publishers. He is the author of the hugely successful Astrosaurs, Cows in Action and Astrosaurs Academy series.
ALSO BY STEVE COLE:
Read all the adventures of Teggs, Gipsy, Arx and Iggy!
1 Riddle of the Raptors
2 The Hatching Horror
3 The Seas of Doom
4 The Mind-Swap Menace
5 The Skies of Fear
6 The Space Ghosts
7 Day of the Dino-Droids
8 The Terror-Bird Trap
9 The Planet of Peril
10 The Star Pirates
11 The Claws of Christmas
12 The Sun-Snatchers
13 Revenge of the Fang
14 The Carnivore Curse
15 The Dreams of Dread
16 The Robot Raiders
17 The Twist of Time
18 The Sabre-Tooth Secret
19 The Forest of Evil
20 Earth Attack!
21 The T. Rex Invasion
22 The Castle of Frankensaur
Read all the adventures of Teggs, Blink and Dutch at the Astrosaurs Academy!
1 Destination: Danger!
2 Contest Carnage!
3 Terror Underground!
4 Jungle Horror!
5 Deadly Drama!
6 Christmas Crisis!
7 Volcano Invaders!
8 Space Kidnap!
Meet the time-travelling cows!
1 The Ter-moo-nators
2 The Moo-my’s Curse
3 The Roman Moo-stery
4 The Wild West Moo-nster
5 World War Moo
6 The Battle for Christmoos
7 The Pirate Moo-tiny
8 The Moo-gic of Merlin
9 The Victorian Moo-ders
10 The Moo-lympic Games
11 First Cows on the Moon
12 The Viking Emoo-gency
If you can../t take the slime, don’t do the crime!
1 The Fearsome Fists
2 The Toxic Teeth
3 The Cyber-Poos
4 The Supernatural Squid
5 The Killer Socks
6 The Last-Chance Chicken
7 The Alligator Army
8 The Conquering Conks
Visit www.stevecolebooks.co.uk for fun, games, jokes, to meet the characters and much, much more!
ASTROSAURS: DAY OF THE DINO-DROIDS
AN RHCP DIGITAL EBOOK 978 1 448 17352 5
Published in Great Britain by RHCP Digital,
an imprint of Random House Children’s Publishers UK
A Random House Group Company
This ebook edition published 2013
Text copyright © Steve Cole, 2006
Cover illustration by Dynamo Design © Random House Children’s Books, 2010
Map visual © Charlie Fowkes, 2006
Illustrations by Woody Fox, copyright © Random House Children’s Books, 2006
First Published in Great Britain by Red Fox in 2006
The right of Steve Cole to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
