The Robot King by H. Badger

CHAPTER 1
    Kip Kirby had been dreaming about this moment his whole life.
    It was the last quarter of the ParticleBall Grand Final! And Kip’s team, the Central City Cyborgs, had a shot at winning.
    Kip played Lead Vertical Striker. It was up to him to score the winning goal. He looked up at the scoreboard.

    ParticleBall was just a game to some kids. But to Kip, it was life. Well, a big part of life at least.
    Kip also had a very important job as a Space Scout.
    Earth was so crowded that soon it would be impossible to fit everyone in. A massive company called WorldCorp hired Space Scouts to search unknown galaxies for a new home planet.
    At 12, Kip was the youngest ever Space Scout. He was desperate to be the one to discover the next Earth. Every Space Scout was.
    After a successful mission, Space Scouts earned one Planetary Point. For a promising discovery on a planet, two points. The Space Scout who discovered Earth 2 won a heap of amazing prizes, including the ultimate one – the Shield of Honour.
    Then the points were added up and put on the Leader Board. Space Scouts always knew who was doing well and who wasn’t.
    â€˜Coming your way, Kip!’ yelled his best friend Jett. Jett was the Cyborgs’ 34th Assistant Vertical Striker.
    Jett lobbed the ParticleBall. The metrewide ball sailed in Kip’s direction.
    Kip crouched, ready to spring up and head the ball through the vertical goal. The goal was four metres off the ground!
    ParticleBall was played on an indoor Field-O-Line. It looked like a round football pitch, except it was covered in fake grass as springy as a trampoline. That’s how the strikers could bounce up to the goal.
    The giant ParticleBall zoomed closer and closer. Eyes on the ball, Kip leapt into the air.
    But at that exact moment –
    Noooooooooooo!
    The ParticleBall shrank to the size of a golf ball! It zinged past Kip’s ear and into the foul zone.
    â€˜No-one could have got that one, Kip,’ said Jett, running up behind him.
    ParticleBall

    â€˜I guess,’ Kip mumbled, disappointed in himself.
    â€˜You just can’t tell when the ball is going to change,’ Jett added, shaking his head.
    ParticleBalls were made of special shape-shifting particles, so they changed size without warning. That was what made ParticleBall so difficult to play.
    A whistle pierced the air.
    â€˜Team huddle!’ blared the Cyborgs’ RoboCoach. RoboCoach was an energetic orange robot with a built-in whistle function and wheels for feet.
    Kids ran from all directions. There were two hundred players in every ParticleBall team. Wherever you went, whatever you did, Earth was too crowded.
    â€˜Ten minutes left,’ said RoboCoach, his glowing orange eyes fixed on Kip. ‘Beating the NanoFreaks depends on our Lead Vertical Striker.’
    Ten minutes …Kip repeated silently.
    In 10 minutes, Kip was meant to be aboard his starship for a Space Scout mission! A wormhole was opening up.
    Wormholes were shortcuts between galaxies. They opened and closed very quickly. Kip might miss it if he was late.
    Kip’s starship was called MoNa, short for Modern Navigator 4000. She had all the latest technology. But she also had the personality of a grumpy old babysitter.
    Kip was her captain, but MoNa always thought she knew best.
    MoNa will kill me if I’m late , Kip thought. But if I leave now, we’ll lose the Grand Final!
    Another whistle sounded. The game was back on!
    I’ll deal with MoNa later , Kip decided.
    Jett stuck out his foot and stole the ball from a NanoFreaks player. The ball was now watermelon-sized.
    â€˜Yours!’ Jett yelled, booting the ball to Kip.
    Kip’s eyes were welded to the ball. He raised his boot. The ball shrank to the size of a marble!
    But it didn’t matter. Kip’s toe was under the ball. With an almighty leap, he sprang high into the air.
    Kip sailed towards the vertical goal, his eyes narrowed. He smacked the ball