"No, guys, no!" Travis shouted as he witnessed the heart-wrenching scene. His fists clenched tightly as his voice trembled with anguish. "I'm going to lose more teammates again," he murmured, lowering his head in despair. Beside him, Eliot pretended to focus on evacuating the civilians, but his eyes gleamed with a mix of coldness and cunning. It wasn't Eliot thinking; it was Xen, the entity residing within him. This was my chance to take down Travis, Xen thought, savoring the moment. But something stopped him.
The rest of the group also fell into a somber silence, believing their companions had been annihilated by the missile. The air was heavy with grief and mourning. However, just at that moment, Anais's voice began to echo across the battlefield with a shout.
Travis, Eliot, Berta, and Patricia exchanged confused glances. Where were they? They could still hear their voices, but there was no trace of them. "Could they be voices from beyond?" Berta wondered aloud, placing a hand over her chest as she tried to hold back tears. "I don't think so," Patricia replied, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand.
Antonio, with a relieved smile, pulled a small baton from his pocket and said, "They're fine. All three are alive." He looked up at the sky and added, "Look above." Everyone turned their gaze toward the heavens and gasped in astonishment as they saw Anais, Cris, and Miguel floating atop black circles that resembled magical platforms.
"We're still alive!" Cris exclaimed, touching his face in disbelief. "I saw my life flash before my eyes when the missile hit us. I thought we were dead." To confirm, Miguel gave him a light pinch on the arm. Cris let out a muffled yelp and then nervously smiled. "With this, I confirm we're still alive," Miguel said between laughs, before looking down and adding, "It's all thanks to Agent A-12, or rather, Antonio." In his mind, he thought: I never imagined his magic could act so quickly and create these things.
"What are these soft, round things?" Anais asked, swaying slightly on one of the platforms. "It's like a very comfortable bed," she added, letting herself fall onto it with an expression of wonder.
"They're my round notes," Antonio explained, wiping the sweat from his forehead with the back of his hand. "Thank goodness I pulled my baton out of my jacket pocket just in time. My round-note friends came to the rescue," he said with a proud smile, though he was still breathing heavily from the effort of performing the movement so quickly.
Upon seeing that his friends were safe and floating in the sky, Xen, inside Eliot, decided to abort his attack on Travis. Good heavens, this fool, Travis, has more lives than a cat. Xen thought bitterly, frustrated that his plan had once again been thwarted.
Meanwhile, Antonio observed the robotic bull, which was already preparing to charge at him again. If conventional weapons can't harm it, I'll have to try something new, he reflected silently while searching for a solution. He pulled out the red cloth he had used earlier and waved it in front of the bull. "Do you want more of me? It seems you've grown fond of me, robot," he said with a mocking smile. Quickly, he stepped onto two round notes as if they were stilts and adopted the stance of a bullfighter. "Ole!" he shouted, causing the bull to rush past him in a fury.
The mechanical bull roared with rage, its robotic expression reflecting an almost human anger. "Ole!" Antonio repeated, provoking it even further. This time, the bull slipped at the speed it was moving, skidding several meters before coming to an abrupt stop. It immediately rose, determined not to fall for the same trick again. But Antonio was craftier. With a quick motion, he caused the bull to crash into a nearby metal wall, impaling its sharp horns with a deafening roar.
The metallic beast thrashed with overwhelming fury, trying to free itself from the metal wall where its horns were stuck. It emitted a mechanical roar that resonated like thunder while smoke billowed from its joints. "Now it's time to finish you off," Antonio said with a confident smile. He gestured with his baton, and two musical notes appeared beside him: a "fusa - Thirty-second note" and a "semifusa - Sixty-fourth note." These began spinning rapidly, like airplane propellers, slicing through the air with a high-pitched hum. Within seconds, the propellers sliced off the bull's horns, leaving it even more enraged.
"I see the artificial intelligence in this robot is quite powerful," Antonio remarked as he watched the bull emit sparks and release small bursts of steam. Without wasting time, he raised his baton again and summoned a series of black and white notes that floated toward the gigantic creature. The notes embedded themselves around it, forming a musical cage that completely immobilized it. Electric discharges coursed through the notes, alternating between the black and white ones, as if they were living circuits blocking any movement.
"Well, now comes the grand finale of this great musical piece," Antonio announced with a playful gleam in his eyes. He lifted his guitar and exclaimed: "MUSICAL STRINGS!" Immediately, the strings of his instrument began unraveling, floating toward the notes that imprisoned the robotic bull. The strings wrapped around the robot's body, pulling forcefully from both ends, as if manipulated by invisible hands. The pressure was so intense that the metal began to creak, slowly splitting apart. With an electric flash, the notes surrounding the robot triggered a massive short circuit, definitively shutting down the mechanical giant.
"That's all," Antonio said as the strings returned to his guitar in a fluid motion. He placed the instrument on his back and looked at his team with a satisfied smile. "You're incredible, my friend," Travis told him, and the others nodded in admiration. Even Eliot pretended to be impressed, though inside, Xen cursed the musician's skill.
"Alright, regroup and let's move on. There must be more of these things, or other robotic forms that need to be defeated to save the population here," Anais ordered with determination. "Yes," everyone responded in unison.
They returned to the depot and found a roofless jeep, covered in dust but seemingly in good condition. "Hey!" Anais called out, turning to Cris. "Can you get it running?"
"Let me check. I picked up a few things from the boss and the maintenance crew," Cris replied as he inspected the vehicle. "Besides, my grandpa had one of these. It's a relic, but it's nice to find something that doesn't rely so much on advanced tech around here," he added with a nostalgic smile.
Cris adjusted some cables and moved a few levers, and the off-road vehicle's engine roared vigorously to life. "This car is operational. Plus, the tank is full," he announced, giving the steering wheel an enthusiastic pat.
"Good, hop in. We're going hunting and destroying robots," Anais ordered as she climbed into the passenger seat. Berta approached Antonio and asked, "Are you coming with us?" He took a moment to think, gazing toward the uncertain horizon. Finally, he responded: "Well, why not? It's always good to have company."
Patricia playfully elbowed him on the shoulder and winked. "And we're good company," she said with a mischievous grin. Antonio laughed and nodded. "Alright, you've convinced me," he said as he climbed into the vehicle. The group set off toward the unknown, ready to face whatever challenges lay ahead.
Elsewhere, everything seemed dark. A young voice echoed through the silence, uncertain and trembling: "Who turned off the light? I can't see anything… Hello! Is anyone there?" The boy continued talking, his tone a mix of curiosity and nervousness as he blindly felt around his surroundings. "Hello, is anyone there? Where are you? I don't have a flashlight or anything to see with," he muttered, advancing slowly with his arms outstretched like an unsure tightrope walker. Suddenly, he collided with something hard. "Ouch!" He took a hand to his head and stepped back. "What did I hit? Maybe a rock?"
"Don't be mean, brother!" a female voice responded from the darkness, her tone both amused and reproachful. "Can't you see that some of us aren't nocturnal creatures? Why did you darken everything?" The female voice paused before adding: "And by the way, where are you? Hello, hello, brother!" she continued shouting, pretending to sound worried, though her words carried a mischievous undertone. "I wonder where he's gotten himself into. Turn on the light!" she finally ordered.
"If you don't do it, I will," the female voice replied, now with a slightly annoyed tone. "Just so you know, I warned you." At that moment, the place lit up suddenly, revealing the boy who had been wondering why it was so dark. He blinked several times, trying to adjust his eyes to the sudden brightness. He looked down at where he thought he had hit his head against a rock. He touched it curiously, but what he had assumed was a stone that began to move slowly.
The figure rose, revealing itself as a gigantic creature the size of an elephant. They were in what appeared to be a large cave, surrounded by metal parts, shattered circuits, twisted cables, and robot heads scattered everywhere. The beast had enormous horns and a horrifying face, with sharp fangs that gleamed under the light. It looked like it had stepped straight out of a horror movie, its eyes burning with an evil glow as it stared at the boy.
The boy, who appeared to be no older than ten, had short pink hair with messy bangs and hazel eyes that reflected pure panic. He was thin and wore a fitted navy-green suit, similar to a painter's overalls, with white stripes on the shoulders that gave him a youthful appearance. His terrified expression was so evident it could be felt from miles away.
"Nice little thing… You wouldn't hurt anyone, would you?" the boy stammered, trying to sound confident, though his voice trembled like a leaf. The enormous creature tilted its head toward him, as if assessing its prey, and then slowly raised one of its gigantic legs, ready to crush him.
"Oh no! What have I gotten myself into? This is going to hurt," the boy said, looking up with wide eyes as he watched the gigantic foot descend inexorably upon him.