“But one day, there was a thunderstorm and it struck Hector’s house and suddenly a lightning bolt struck Hector’s parents and they unfortunately couldn’t survive.”

Once upon a time, a married couple had a child. This child was loved. The boy was named Hector and he had a wonderful life. And until the age of nine, Hector’s parents had another baby and the whole family loved the baby. Hector named his brother Demian and the whole family agreed. Time went by and both children grew. Hector was twelve and Demian was three. But one day, there was a thunderstorm and it struck Hector’s house and suddenly a lightning bolt struck Hector’s parents and they unfortunately couldn’t survive. Suddenly, another lightning bolt struck Hector and his brother, but they survived. Both Hector and Demian were crying because their parents had died.

An image appeared on the wall and a voice started speaking. It said, “Hector, Demian, I know you guys are having a hard moment but I have a question: Would you guys like to avenge your parents?” The boys both answered, “Yes.” So the mysterious voice said, “Then you must find a robot and destroy him and there may be a chance that your parents come back to life. But I must warn you even though you guys are immune to lightning, he will have many types of power. But your weakness is his psychic and he does have psychic powers. Lastly, your parents wanted me to give you these swords and these shields.”

The shields had lightning images and a warrior in the middle. They were the perfect size for each boy. The boys knew what they needed to do. They had to go destroy that robot. On they went and instantly they saw a small creature but it looked like it was ready to attack them so they quickly zapped it with their lightning powers. As they went on, they kept on facing mostly enemies till one moment when time felt like it was slowing down. Suddenly they saw a tall robot. It was running toward them so they tried to run but they couldn’t run as fast as the robot and he was about to step on Demian, but something happened…

To be continued

Every year, 826LA students gather for an immersive five-day workshop on the possibilities of what it means to be a writer. In our Summer Writers Workshop, students engage in writing activities and workshops led by guest writers, artists, and 826LA staff to experience different forms that writing can take. The goal of the week is to build students’ ability to tell their own stories, as well as their confidence to call themselves writers.  The Summer Writers Workshop culminated in the publication of An Echo (Park) Within Ourselves.

Read more about 826LA’s tutoring program and volunteer opportunities here. 

You can purchase An Echo (Park) Within Ourselves at the Time Travel Mart here.