One student wrote an amazing story about a strong-willed inventor named Galaxy! Read below:
Prologue
It had been a year after the Chronos Bomb had dropped on Galaxy Rover’s hometown, Seafoam City. She’d been having flashbacks to that terrible day, the day that changed her whole understanding of time. Her family had been lucky enough to have been in shelter; others hadn’t been so fortunate and the impact had scarred the reputation of the New World. This was the exact reason humans had left Earth. To turn over a new leaf and leave all the despondence behind.
Galaxy sighed heavily and grabbed her phone. Although time could no longer be measured, Galaxy still liked to check “the time” on her phone. She hadn’t resetted it because she wanted a memoir from the past, something that would remind her of the good times. She was a weird kid, no doubt, but also a very innovative one. Galaxy was an inventor, a fervent one, in fact.
Her recent inventions included a robot that could clean dishes; one of her biggest pet peeves. Galaxy wasn’t exactly into coding, but her best friend, Starr was. That’s why, whenever Galaxy was making something electronic, she asked Starr over. Galaxy’s real passion was building. She had fixed numerous incongruous appliances and gadgets (along with helping her cousins with those darn “DIY” kits!) so she liked to think that she was a mechanic.
Galaxy had always wanted to fix things; while other kids were barely learning how to tie their shoes, she had already programmed her first mini-robot. Starr was no exception either; she had been coding before she even knew how to read. Sure they were great with technology, but their parents definitely did not approve.
“You should be learning something more dominant, like Math or Science,” Galaxy’s mom insisted. “You don’t need to know how to program robots or build machines. Leave that to the professionals.”
Her dad added, “Someday, you’ll be thankful for learning a better subject. After all, then you’ll be able to go to a great school and learn much more. Don’t be so impulsive.”
Galaxy was furious that day. She wondered why her parents couldn’t understand. She wanted to be a professional! That was the whole point of learning something, wasn’t it? Besides being a mechanic, Galaxy aspired to save the world, a cliche, but after what happened the year before, somebody had to take a chance…
The day the Chronos Bomb was dropped, Galaxy and her family had been vacationing at Disney Land. It was meant to be a birthday vacation for Galaxy but it turned out to be the worst day of her life. They had been on Splash Mountain when the ride malfunctioned suddenly. Shortly after, the operator announced,
“A bomb has been dropped in a town not far from here. Please exit via the stairs in an orderly fashion. I repeat, please exit using the stairs.”
Well, either the people didn’t hear, or they were too panicked, but nobody exited in “an orderly fashion”, so to speak. Everybody was rushing through, pushing and shoving, including Galaxy’s family. Once they reached the bottom, a SWAT team was waiting for them. All the passengers were escorted back home, where they learned that the bomb was actually a device that would stop time – forever. Unless someone went to the enigmatic Fate Temple and went through a list of trials and traps, there would be no hope.
Since that day, she’d been working on a special robot, one that could go into the Fate Temple without being destroyed. She worked and worked, barely eating and sleeping, to finish her bot. Oblivious to her parents, Galaxy worked on it privately. There were many times when she felt like it was devoid of something, and then realized what was missing. Sometimes, Starr would come over and tweak the robot, perfecting it even more. Months later, after much consideration, the robot was ready.
Both of the girls went into Galaxy’s garage and set up the robot. It would be connected to a sensor they had dropped off at the Fate Temple. The robot would be controlled by Galaxy, while Starr checked and adjusted the sensor’s view. When the robot moved, the sensor would too. That way, the path ahead wouldn’t hurt Galaxy or Starr. They hoped their plan would work, after all the time spent.
There were some near misses with traps; misses that made Galaxy whimper in fear. She just wanted to end what seemed like a big headache to her. She just wanted time to go back to normal. On the other hand, Starr worried as she monitored the sensor closely. There was no time for mistakes.
When the sensor reached the end of the maze, a giant yellow orb sat on a pedestal. Galaxy gasped. The shimmery outer coating made her want to dance, and the golden light inside passed a wave of odd warmth through her. So, maneuvering the bot carefully, Galaxy steadily moved the sensor on the orb. Like a dazzling supernova the orb burst up into the sky, softly imploding and raining down on the temple. The idols there were magically restored and polished, even the dusty walls were cleaned. Even Starr, who usually wasn’t impressed by anything cracked a smile.
They had done it! Still, Galaxy and Starr weren’t sure if it had worked. They got their answer when day turned to night an hour later. They went over to the news station and showed them the whole recording that had been taken on Galaxy’s phone. They were very impressed and featured it as breaking news. They received the Young Heroes Award and even the mayor shook their hand. Galaxy’s parents were more than thrilled and admitted that they were wrong for not letting her pursue her dreams. They apologized and were relieved when Galaxy forgave them.
Epilogue
Galaxy ended up going to Engineering School and grew up to be a famous mechanic. Her dedication is noted on a plaque in Seafoam City square. All the kids in school are taught about her and are encouraged to pursue what they want. Starr is the CEO of Road to Code, a coding camp for children. She is also famous and has a plaque alongside Galaxy’s. The robot that they used to complete the mission has been put in a museum and is sometimes used at meet and greets. There have been numerous movies and books inspired by them. The legacy of Galaxy and Starr will never be forgotten.
Sequoia Scholars 