Astro Boy #3: The Secret of Astro

Talk about all things Astro Boy!
User avatar
Fauna
Beyond the Stars
Posts: 2244
Joined: 16 years ago
Location: Saskatchewan
Contact:

The book arrived!

Postby Fauna » 9 years ago

It's in rather good condition, considering it's a children's chapter book from nine years ago. There's eight chapters in total, and so far, I've transcribed and translated the first one. I've been compiling the French and English texts into Word documents, for anyone who may be interested in having a copy after I finish the whole thing.

CHAPTER 1


It starts off with Astro in the middle of a speed test after getting a new atomic fuel cell, in which he was told to "run as fast as you can" and he does - going 135 kilometres an hour and nearly blowing up the treadmill. A new character, Dr. Shimo, tells Astro that the fuel cell is good to go, but there were two brief moments where it stopped working when Astro exerted himself, so he needs to be careful.

Astro gets dismissed and goes to look for Uran (called Zoran in here), since he has a new idea for hide and seek:

She would have two minutes to find a hiding place and he would hunt with his hypervision. [...] Zoran was pretty good at that game. Throughout their games, she had learned to hide by using all the resources of their playing field. To hide her thermal imprint, she pressed against a radiator; to conceal visually, she based herself in flower boxes.

When he goes up to Zoran's study room, Nora is there, but says that Zoran never went to her lessons and had gone for an errand with Ochanomizu (O'Shay in this book.) But he's not in his office, and nowhere in the building, and not even Yuko recalls seeing him since the night before.

Astro goes down to the super-secure security office, and a guard inside checks the cameras to see where O'Shay is:

The intercom was silent for a few moments. Astro really starting to get worried about his sister and the professor.
The voice spoke again, more urgent:
“Astro, we have a problem. I'll open the door for you.”



And chapter end! I have a shift at work today, but after that, I'll be back and ready to translate chapter two!
ImageImageImageImage
Dr. Tenma lover and aficionado since 2006!
Now featuring the Sad Old Dad Squad (The S.O.D.S.)

User avatar
AstroBoyGF
On a Flight into Space
Posts: 1344
Joined: 15 years ago
Location: my house of coures! ^^

Postby AstroBoyGF » 9 years ago

ugh america misses out on all the cool stuff but i cant wait to read it
And the nursery and Paradise Estate didn't really collapse. The moon's made of green cheese, and I'm the queen of England!"
-MLP lickety split

User avatar
Fauna
Beyond the Stars
Posts: 2244
Joined: 16 years ago
Location: Saskatchewan
Contact:

Postby Fauna » 9 years ago

CHAPTER 2


Astro is let into the security office by the big, grey uniform-clad but friendly Colonel Misha. He shows Astro around the massive security office, and to a screen with a map of the Ministry covered in red dots. Each dot is being tracked through every guest, robot, and employee's ID tags, and Zoran and O'Shay don't appear on the screen.

Misha looks up the last known coordinates of O'Shay:

“This morning at 7:12 am, the professor left the room. He went to the lab. He stayed there for half an hour and then he returned to his private bathroom, where he took a shower. He joined you and Zoran for breakfast, and then...”

Astro was suspended by the lips of the colonel. “Then what?”

“Well, all I know,” the man said, shaking his head, “He and your sister left the Ministry at 9:04 am.”

“That's all?”

“Our monitoring system is designed to protect the Ministry and all who are there. Our equipment does not cover the outside area. The professor and your sister may have gone for a walk...”

“The professor is never away like this without a good reason. And, in any case, never for that long. They should have returned.”


Misha sends his guards to search the park outside the Ministry, and Astro is allowed to go along. Astro flies through the park while the guards search on the ground with ID badge sensors. They finally catch O'Shay's badge...coming from his balled-up lab coat thrown behind a shrub, with Zoran's vest. Astro is reasonably disturbed.

“Tell the colonel the professor and Zoran didn't go for a walk,” he said to the guard. “They were kidnapped!”
ImageImageImageImage

Dr. Tenma lover and aficionado since 2006!

Now featuring the Sad Old Dad Squad (The S.O.D.S.)

User avatar
Fauna
Beyond the Stars
Posts: 2244
Joined: 16 years ago
Location: Saskatchewan
Contact:

Postby Fauna » 9 years ago

CHAPTER 3


Colonel Misha has asked Astro to stay in his room while the investigation goes on, for his own safety, but Astro feels terrible not being able to do anything. Astro has brought Zoran's favourite plush doll into his room, and hugs it, knowing he needs to help.

He changes out of his clothes, finding another monitoring badge inside his pants inseam. Astro cuts it out with a little knife (how does he have that?!) and leaves it in his bed, knowing it'll look like he's taking a nap on the security board. He flies out a window and back to the park he found O'Shay's lab coat in.

Astro analyzes the area he found the coat in, and finds three things: fragments of rope, some dark fabric, and bits of sand that definitely don't look like they came from anything in the area. He analyzes the sand's characteristics, identifying it as coming from the Tamusu Desert, which is several hundred kilometres outside Metro City. Astro realizes there are security men looking in the area, and not wanting to be found, he takes flight out to the Tamusu.

On the way there, Astro suddenly recalls a name: Dr. Tenma. He remembers that Tenma stole several inventions from the Ministry long ago, and the police assumed he had made a secret base in the Tamusu, but had never been able to find it there.

Astro arrives in the desert and searches for hours, finding nothing but untouched sand, rocks, and rocky hills. The evening comes, and Astro sits on a rock:

Astro sat atop a hill and ordered his systems begin their maintenance. All children wash and brush their teeth before going to bed; well, Astro had the robot equivalent: he had to check circuits, perform micro-lubrication of his internal mechanisms, and all sorts of little maintenance. His robotic system managing it all on its own was a bit straining, but everything seemed to be in a good state.

Astro examines the stars, when suddenly, he catches an indecipherable transmission from one machine to another, and notices a panel has risen from a rocky hill in the distance. Not wanting to be detected, Astro walks towards the panel, realizing many more panels have risen out from rocks around him.

He reaches the panel, noticing it has come out from a dark, deep pit going far into the ground. Astro decides this is the only way to get into Tenma's underground base, and carefully, he jumps in.


-------------------

(I'm realizing more and more that the Pocket Jeunesse novels are entirely their own series! The settings, characters, and timelines are all different, and I'm really excited to see how this turns out.)
ImageImageImageImage

Dr. Tenma lover and aficionado since 2006!

Now featuring the Sad Old Dad Squad (The S.O.D.S.)

User avatar
Fauna
Beyond the Stars
Posts: 2244
Joined: 16 years ago
Location: Saskatchewan
Contact:

Postby Fauna » 9 years ago

CHAPTER 4


A bit of a shorter chapter this time!

Astro drops like a rock into the pit, not using any of his powers in an attempt to avoid detection. Before the last air vent in the hole, Astro activates some magnetic sensors in his hands (a book exclusive power!) and clings to the wall, climbs into the vent, and finds a hallway on the other side of the vent.

Slipping into the hallway, he walks forever through darkness, until a door opens not too far away from him. Astro ducks into another room, but suddenly, a voice comes from behind him:

Astro heard a voice, but to his enormous surprise, it was not from the hallway. It was right behind him...

“Hello, Astro Boy. Welcome to my humble abode.”

Astro Boy whirled around, but in the darkness, he saw nothing. The voice, deep, slightly metallic, continued:

“I was expecting you. You didn't take long to find me. Very good, I'm proud of you.”

Astro Boy shivered. The voice was calm, confident, frightening.

“You do not know me yet, Astro. Me, I know you well. I am Dr. Tenma, and I'll tell you the real story of your creation...”
ImageImageImageImage

Dr. Tenma lover and aficionado since 2006!

Now featuring the Sad Old Dad Squad (The S.O.D.S.)

User avatar
Earthshine
Moderator
Posts: 2583
Joined: 11 years ago
Location: Pacific Northwest of the USA

Postby Earthshine » 9 years ago

Thanks for all this Fauna, I appreciate it. I'm sure we all do.

User avatar
teugene50
On a Flight into Space
Posts: 1930
Joined: 13 years ago
Location: https://t.me/pump_upp
Contact:

Postby teugene50 » 9 years ago

does it comes with pictures on the book?

User avatar
Fauna
Beyond the Stars
Posts: 2244
Joined: 16 years ago
Location: Saskatchewan
Contact:

Postby Fauna » 9 years ago

The only pictures inside the book are of some really basic art profiles. I really wish they'd included some art of Nora/Robita, Dr. Shimo, and Colonel Misha:
Attachments
IMG_2680.JPG
IMG_2680.JPG (231.39 KiB) Viewed 2147 times
ImageImageImageImage

Dr. Tenma lover and aficionado since 2006!

Now featuring the Sad Old Dad Squad (The S.O.D.S.)

User avatar
Fauna
Beyond the Stars
Posts: 2244
Joined: 16 years ago
Location: Saskatchewan
Contact:

Postby Fauna » 9 years ago

CHAPTER 5



Astro yells for the owner of the voice behind him to show themselves, and a hologram of Dr. Tenma displays before him:

In the darkness, a ghostly figure appeared. The figure was tall, thin, with disheveled dark hair, and very pale skin. Immediately Astro activated his sensors and realized he was just a hologram.

"It's you who's holding Professor O'Shay and my sister?"

"I mean them no harm. They will soon be free, which all depends on you... "


Tenma explains that he only kidnapped the two to bring Astro to him, and Astro grudgingly allows him to ask one question - "What do you know about your birth, Astro Boy?" - Astro responds that O'Shay made him to help fight crime. Tenma asks him why, then, inside his circuits he has the same logo that Tenma has on a signet ring, described as a "strange cross".

Astro tries to explain this, but Tenma outbursts that it was him who created Astro, claiming that O'Shay stole the boy from him and brainwashed him. Astro realizes he does have a gap in his early memories, but suddenly infuriated and not wanting to believe this, he tries to tackle the hologram but only flies straight through.

“Why are you only telling me today?” Astro demanded.

"I've wanted to do this for a long time. Every day, I watch your exploits, and I about how these people are lying to you and betraying you. You're a champion, Astro, you're the offspring of one who can lead this world! Beside me, you'd finally have what you need to be a master of strength and power. Instead, they make you play, protect humans, and be the watchdog of Metro City. This is not worthy of you. When I created you, I had intended you for greater purposes. Now is the time for you to take the place that is yours! "


Astro is reasonably angry that Tenma decided to kidnap his family to do this, and insists that he wants to see them before he listens to Tenma further. The doctor refuses, claiming, "it is I who makes the rules."

"All right, doctor. What should I do to make you release them? "

“I prefer you'd come with me. You'll see that if you cooperate, you won't regret anything... "
ImageImageImageImage

Dr. Tenma lover and aficionado since 2006!

Now featuring the Sad Old Dad Squad (The S.O.D.S.)

User avatar
Earthshine
Moderator
Posts: 2583
Joined: 11 years ago
Location: Pacific Northwest of the USA

Postby Earthshine » 9 years ago

This is an interesting take on the lore of the story and I appreciate that it is different from what we know as the 2003 version and it's not just a regurgitated adaption. It's been an enjoyable read and can't wait to see how it all ends.

I think it's interesting how Legardinier's wrote this thus far, it gives us a different Dr. Tenma too which I find refreshing (he seems darker in this novel than in the 2003 anime).


Return to “Astro Boy Discussion”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 64 guests