Free Robot Warriors by Zac Harrison Page A

its own reflection...”
    John felt a sudden pang of nervousness as he realized how late it was gettingand that he had to go to class. Then he remembered Emmie had told him there would be no lessons today. All the students had the day off to watch the semi-finals and final. “The Robot Warriors’ contest is a really, really big deal,” she’d said the night before. “I’m so proud of you! Of you both, that is. Kaal too. Not just you, of course.”
    The whole day off, just for a contest. This IS a big deal.
    All at once, John felt as if the artificial gravity had been turned up to max. Suddenly he realized just how much pressure was on him. He felt wobbly and faint.
    More than a hundred pupils would be cheering him on today. That wasn’t just an ego boost. It was a burden of responsibility.
    What if he lost? What if he lost massively?
    What if he’d just been lucky so far, and his luck was about to run out – with the whole school watching?
    His mind raced. He wasn’t a genius. He wasn’t even above average. OK, so he’d always been good at maths, but apart from that... what right did he have to even hope to win this contest?
    What a weird feeling. He was looking forward to the contest and dreading it, all at the same time.
    He badly wanted to talk to Kaal. This wouldn’t be so stressful for either of them if they could go through it together. But Kaal was surrounded by fans, unable to reach him. As John watched, Kaal got up and dived into the shower yet again to escape them.
    That was the last straw. “OK, all of you − OUT!” He began to shoo the crowd of startled fans out of the room. “We’re glad you’re supporting us, but we need a bit of space!” Suddenly an idea flashed across his mind. “Tell you what – if you really want to help, why don’t you go and save us some seats in the Centre?”
    “Come on!” yelled Kritta. “We’ll grab the best seats!” She dashed out of the room.
    “The best seats are for the followers of KAAAAAL!” the one-eyed creature boomed, charging after her. Within moments, the room was empty.
    John heaved a relieved sigh and tapped on the shower door. “Kaal? It’s OK. You can come out now.”
    Kaal poked his head warily around the door. “Really?”
    “Yep,” John grinned. Finally, a chance to talk to Kaal in private.
    Just then, a light began to flash and a buzzer began to sound. The videophone!
    “Your parents are calling, John! Zepp told him. “Shall I send a busy signal?”
    “No!” John said with a sigh. Much as he wanted to speak to Kaal, John couldn’t risk his parents phoning Wortham Court if they were calling about something important. He grabbed the videophone camera and twisted it so that it faced into the corner of the room, then stood in front of it. He didn’t even want to think about what would happen if his parents caught sight of Kaal.
    Both his mum and dad appeared on the screen, waving.
    “Hello, dear!” his mum said. “Your dad was upset he’d missed you the other day, so we thought we’d give you a call! It’s not a bad time, is it?”
    “Don’t worry, won’t keep you long,” his dad said, smiling. “How’s life at school?”
    “Ace!” John said. “Mum, Dad, there’s something I need to tell you.” He took a deep breath. “I’m a finalist in a contest!”
    They both applauded. “That’s wonderful news!” his mum said. “What sort of contest? School sports day?”
    “Come off it!” his dad said, jokingly. “It’ll be some sort of video game tournament. You know how much practice he’s put in with those.”
    “Nothing like that,” John assured them. “It’s... um... it’s a science competition!”
    “Fantastic! That’s your lab, is it?” his dad asked, peering into the screen at John’s dorm. “Ooh. It’s very futuristic.”
    John realized he’d pointed the camera at the dorm’s high-tech drinks dispenser. “Oh, yeah. It’s all ultra modern, and stuff. Wortham Court’s got... um... millions of