Real Steel Page #4

- You're your problem.

- What's that supposed to mean?

I have been here for you a long time.

In the ring, out of the ring, and the

whole ugly spiral down, and I'm tired.

My father invested everything he had

in your fight career. We loved...

He loved you like family.

And this is his home.

I'm just trying not to let it die.

That's my plan.

What's yours?

You're done, right?

You're finally done?

Because I sure as hell am, Charlie.

I got nothing left.

All right.

Maybe there's something here.

This robot the kid brought in last

night. Would you look at it for me?

Please?

I've never seen anything like it before.

He's Generation Two, but barely.

I found a power cell that fits him, and

I hooked him up to this old G-2 remote.

You can move him around, but he's crap.

Maybe I can get a sparring gig for him,

make a few hundred bucks.

Stop.

It's my robot!

It took me half the night

dragging him out of there. He's mine.

He's yours? Yeah. But the parts

we're putting in him are mine!

You idiots should see if he powers up

before you fight over him.

What happened to you?

Watch out. Stay back.

Looks like he's got a shadow function.

That's pretty rare.

He can mime your movements

and store them in memory.

- Is there anything here we could use?

- Not much.

There's a bucket...

There's a bucket

I use to wash the truck.

Use it and clean him up.

He smells like crap.

Wash yourself off, too,

while you're at it. You stink.

I switched him to remote.

It's pretty basic.

Just use the toggles here

to steer him and walk him.

- You play video games, right?

- Of course.

Same idea, only this one's

a thousand-pound robot.

Cool.

"Atom."

His name is Atom.

Can we get him a fight?

I don't think he was

ever a boxing robot.

He's a G-2, built in early 2014.

He was a sparring bot.

They must have built robots

like this one

that could mirror the fighting style

of any other robot.

OK, so can we get him a fight?

Are you not listening?

He's a sparring bot.

Built to take a lot of hits, but never

dishing out any real punishment.

You could always sell him off for parts.

- Can't you get him a fight?

- "Why can't you get him a fight?"

God, you don't quit, do you?

You want me to put him in some

bottom-rung scrap-fest to the death?

I saw how scared you were

at Crash Palace.

The places that would let you fight this

robot would make you pee your pants.

Excellent. Get him a fight.

Stubborn kid.

Surprise, surprise.

Let's take a walk.

Can you understand me?

Don't worry. Your secret's safe with me.

You've known Charlie a long time.

Too long.

We both kind of grew up in this gym.

My dad, he trained him.

That's them. That's Charlie.

- What was he like?

- As a boxer?

- As anything.

- He was something.

He was lean, tough.

No quit, no fear.

Come here. I want to show you something.

I have this newspaper article

from Phoenix 2007

when Charlie fought Nico Tandy,

the top contender.

You were at the Nico Tandy fight?

I was. Charlie was supposed to be

a warm-up fight, an easy win.

Nico wasn't even supposed

to break a sweat, but...

...nobody told Charlie that, so he

just kept coming and coming at him.

Check this out.

That's Charlie.

First, Nico couldn't believe

the balls on this nobody.

But Charlie kept coming,

and that's when Nico looked scared.

- Really?

- Really.

He was toying with Nico.

The top contender,

number two in the world,

and Charlie was dancing with him.

Charlie was floating

inches off the canvas that night.

He was like a ghost.

Nico couldn't even see him.

I could.

He was beautiful.

He was beautiful.

So what happened?

Did Charlie beat Nico Tandy?

No, Nico Tandy put me on my ass

in the 12th round. Twice.

Second time for good. Lights out.

You were ahead on the scorecards

- going into the 12th round.

- Nico Tandy rung my bell

and went on to be the undefeated

world champ for the next three years.

- He knocked you out?

- Yeah. So did a lot of guys.

You knocked a lot of guys out, too.

- 24 and 19. It's not exactly a career.

- But every fight a knockout.

- Yeah.

- Win or lose, fight's not over

- till someone's on the mat.

- Till someone's on the mat.

- Your old man taught me that.

- Damn straight he taught you that.

- Who else did you fight?

- Go get your stuff together.

I don't need to.

Did you fight for the title?

Yeah, you do. We leave in an hour. Go.

Wow. Here.

Keep it.

- Thanks.

- You're welcome.

I like that kid.

He likes you.

- What I said yesterday was...

- No, nothing more to say.

I'm heading off to Atlanta tonight

to see if I can get a partner

or raise money to get a new bot.

That's what you wanted, right? Me gone?

Yeah, that's what I wanted.

OK.

Look.

The champ is here. Zeus is here.

Yeah.

Zeus! No one has ever gone two rounds

with this monster. Two rounds!

The champ puts his Real Steel world

championship belt on the line tonight.

He just may have a real fight

on his hands.

Zeus, greatest robot boxer of all time.

Ever. End of story. Good night!

- So cool. It's so cool.

- What?

Come on.

Listen up. I got to go find Finn.

I want you to stay in this area.

Out of the way. Champ coming through.

Zeus coming through.

Move, move. Champ coming through.

Farra Lemkova, daughter behind

the father/daughter Zeus team.

They say your father's the money

and you are the mind behind Zeus.

You're very kind,

but I assure you, the mind behind Zeus

belongs to the great Tak Mashido.

What did it take to lure

the reclusive genius, former boy wonder

and arguably the most important

bot designer in the history of the sport

out of retirement?

Why don't you ask him yourself?

Is this Tak Mashido's greatest creation?

Zeus is autonomous

and constantly evolving during a fight.

With his adaptive operating system,

he recognizes patterns and rewrites

his fight code instantaneously.

For myself and Joe Sixpack out there,

are you saying that Zeus?

I'm saying that no matter

what happens in that ring...

...the result of any fight is inevitable.

What Zeus sees...

...he kills.

Sweet.

I'm never going into business with you.

I just need a break here.

You got that old bot truck out there.

You always got something in there.

I got an old sparring bot,

ain't worth the paint left on it.

What am I supposed to do with that?

The Zoo. Take him to the Zoo.

They fight there tomorrow.

Even I wouldn't be caught dead

at the Zoo.

I just need a little loan.

What?

- You're serious, Charlie?

- A loan.

Couple hundred. Few hundred.

Whatever you got.

You know I'm good for it.

I know you, and as much

as I like you, dude...

...you're a bad bet, brother.

Right, yeah.

Did you see that?

That's what's left of Axelrod.

Where you been? I told you to stay put.

You should have seen him.

Zeus was, like, amazing!

- Amazing, huh?

- Unbelievable, yeah.

He was just peppering Axelrod with

punches, but so fast. It was incredible.

Axelrod didn't even land a punch.

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