Scene from Chapter Nine of The Tiny Cyborg

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Picture description

For this chapter, you have several options. Read the excerpt below and look at the images for more inspiration.

1. You could draw a picture of Darius and Robo, with Daius moving aside the recycler (a trash can filled with robotic parts) to reveal the trash vent behind it. The trash vent would look like a hole in the wall. (Put Flea in the picture too!)
2. You could draw Darius crawling into the trash vent with Robo right behind him. (Put Flea in the picture too! He can be riding on the back of Darius or Robo.)
3. You could draw Robo in his changed shape so that he can fit into the trash vent. (See the example picture below of how Robo can “crawl.”) In this state, Robo looks a little like he does on the cover of the Tiny Cyborg (below). But his back legs would be bent the opposite way. standing beside Darius. (Put Flea in the picture too! He can be sitting on Robo’s back.)

Have fun!

Excerpt from Chapter Nine of The Tiny Cyborg:

“We can’t just let Dr. Fleed kidnap my father,” Darius said. “We have to do something!”

“There’s no way out of this lab,” Mr. Maxel said. “And even if we did escape, we’d never reach the shuttle in time.

Darius let his gaze roam around the laboratory. “There must be something here we could use to open the door.” He frowned at a partially built cyborg, wondering if the arms were strong enough to lift the door manually. It only had one arm, though. Where was the other.

He spotted it just to the side of the workbench, in the recycler.

“The trash vents.” Darius ran to the recycler and pulled it out from the wall, exposing the vent behind it. “If we go this way, we can reach shuttle before Dr. Fleed.”

Mr. Maxel crouched beside Darius and peered with him into the vent. “That’s much too small to fit through.”

“Not for me.” Darius dropped to his hands and knees and crawled inside.

“Please be careful, Darius,” Mr. Maxel said. “When you get there, warn the guards that Dr. Fleed is coming. And that he has your father.”

“I will.” Darius glanced over his shoulder. “Come on, Robo.”

Robo’s legs clicked as his front legs stretched out in before him and his back legs rotated behind. Then he rolled into the vent behind Darius, who led the way.

Darius

Darius is a small boy. He has big eyes, short light brown hair, and a kind face.

Flea

How Robo can fold his legs to “crawl”

Robo

Robo is a robot dog that was built of scrap metal, so he has panels in different colors. But he is mostly silver. He has a black monitor screen like a mask over his eyes, which he uses to communicate with green text. One of his eyes is a camera. The other is a light that lights up green or red. This is Robo’s quick way of saying “yes” or “no.” His tail is a retractable antenna. His legs rotate so he can stand or lie flat on his stomach. And he has the letters ROBO on the bottom of his belly. That was how Tinker learned his name. Here is a portrait of Robo done by artist Kirbi Fagan, who also did the book cover:

Robo is a transformer of sorts. His legs shift so he can fly like a tiny space craft. I picture him boxy and functional. He’s fairly big. His head is as high as an adult’s waist, but when his legs fold up, he can slide under a bed.

His mouth can open up so he can be filled with trash, which he uses for fuel.

He is most similar to the Welsh Terrier breed of dog. Click here to see Google search results for this type of dog to give you more inspiration for how he might look.

Here is the cover for (book 3):

Here is the book cover for Tinker (book 1):

Click here to return to the chapter overview and instructions page for The Tiny Cyborg illustrations.