A STORY FROM A SMALL TOWN

CHAPTER 1

1.

In a small town in Ohio, a young boy lives alone in a small populated area near the woods. His name is Alioth Roy, a light blonde 12 year-old kid, light skin complexion, who spent his daily life at his parents' house. They used to be filled with life and joy but it all ended after an accident.

Alioth refuses to leave the house, this is the only place where he can still feel his parents. His relatives nearby took him to their house but he will eventually escape and go back to his parents' house. After taking him back countless times, his relatives gave up and let him stay at his parents' house. They made a deal that he can stay there as long as Alioth will rely on them. The residents nearby agreed to look after him and occasionally check if he is doing fine. Thus the story of Alioth unfolds.

Waking up at 8 am in the morning, Alioth is definitely an independent child. He cooks for himself, of course only the simple ones. He often goes to his relatives to eat dinner then walks back to his house. Since his relatives from his mother's side are the only ones near him, they hand Alioth some groceries weekly. Good thing that they have a decent income. Alioth is also in charge of cleaning and maintaining the house in order. Indeed, he is capable of living alone.

Roaming outside is what Alioth likes to do when he has spare time, though he never interacts with his neighbors. One sunny day, Alioth stumbles into a mysterious cave. It wasn't really a deep cave, it's more of a hole carved on a humongous boulder that creates a cave-like feature. Alioth entered the cave and saw a mechanical object, probably a machine or somesort. Curiosity knocked on Alioth's mind, he began to inspect it even longer. Alioth feels an extreme excitement in what he has discovered. He immediately pulled the robot out of the cave. He managed to pull it out of the surface but due to its heaviness, Alioth was exhausted. Luckily his cousin Rigel Lavoie, black hair with darker skin complexion compared to his, 4 years older and a lot taller than him, found Alioth while he was jogging.

"Oh, Hi Alioth! That thing looks cool!" Rigel greeted.

Alioth smiled, proudly showing his discovery.

"It looks like a robot, did you find it?" Rigel asked.

Alioth excitedly nodded.

"Cool, let's bring that to your house!" Rigel suggested.

With the help of Rigel, Alioth accomplished his goal. They successfully brought the machine to his house. Rigel promised to visit him again so that they can test the machine's usage.

Afternoon came and Alioth still had no idea on how to operate the said machine. It has an oval shape for its head, a sort of antenna on top of it, 4 long Limb-like metal, and a rounded rectangle as the body connecting the parts. That moment, Alioth realized that his dad's friend owns a repair shop. He immediately ran towards the shop to see how Martin repairs different machines.

"Hi Alioth, it's been a while since your last visit. Come in!" Martin Scott, a man in his mid 40s who loves wearing cargo pants plus loose shirts, warmly greeted Alioth.

Alioth entered the shop and sat on a chair.

"Is there anything I can do for you?" Martin offered.

Alioth shaked his head indicating that he didn't need anything.

Martin thinks that Alioth wants to just visit because they used to visit his house. "If you need anything just throw me anything near you" Martin humorly said as he went back to repair an oven.

The sun settles and it's time for Alioth to go home. Martin offered to stay and join him for dinner but Alioth politely declined. He still has some leftovers from that day, though he agreed that he will take the offer some other time. Martin has 2 children, a daughter and a son, they are both studying in college and boarding near the university. That is the reason why Martin is glad to have some company, though Alioth is quite distant. With that, Alioth went home, ate dinner, and rested.

The next morning, Alioth rapidly did all his chores, ate breakfast then immediately headed to Martin's house. Same thing happened, just like yesterday. Martin works while Alioth watches. They are also listening to some old tunes. Martin and Alioth even eat lunch together. Martin thinks that maybe Alioth wants some company, that's why he is doing his best to make Alioth comfortable.

Afternoon comes and Alioth leaves early, he goes to his relatives' house to eat dinner. His Aunt Milly Lavoie, a quite chubby caring person, sister of his mother, noticed that there's a brighter vibe from Alioth. She asked how Alioth's day was but Alioth just smirked and looked at his cousin.

Rigel gets the idea and he immediately answers "We're just exploring and learning new things!".

Milly felt happy since she is now seeing a connection between Alioth and Rigel. "You silly boys, I will let you keep that secret, just don't put yourself in danger okay?" Milly replied with care for the young ones. After their joyful dinner, Alioth went back home and called it a day.

As the sun rises, Rigel knocks on Alioth's door. Alioth opened the door while squeezing his eyes. When he finally comes to his senses, he lets Rigel inside to check the Robot.

"I don't have classes today, we can examine this robot today!" Rigel excitedly suggested.

Alioth goes to the window and points to Martin's house across the street.

"The repair shop? You want to bring this robot to Mr. Martin?" Rigel asked.

Alioth shaked his head, he then points himself and Rigel then points back to Martin's house.

"Oh you mean just us. Hmmmm, are we going to study there?" Rigel wildly guessed.

Alioth smiled and nodded his head.

"We can repair this robot by ourselves if we manage to learn how to do it. I think it's a great idea! Let's go now!" Rigel said.

Rigel and Alioth immediately go to Martin's house. Since it's a small neighborhood, everyone basically knows each other. Martin welcomed them as they entered the shop.

"2 young men came to visit, what is your goal for today, young lads?" Martin asked.

"We want to learn how to repair things, mr. Martin!" Rigel answered while Alioth nodded behind him.

"That sounds wonderful! Don't worry, this old man will teach you everything that I know! Prepare yourselves, I'll just get something" Martin happily replied then walked inside the house.

Martin immediately dialed his phone and called Milly. He is very excited to report on what the boys are up to.

"Hello Milly, I just want to inform you that your boys are here in my shop" Martin said.

"Your shop? Are they bothering you? I can fetch them if they are" Milly worriedly asked.

"No no no, you got it wrong! Haha, I only inform you that they are here because they want me to teach them how to repair! Isn't it great?" Martin clarified the situation.

"Oooh, So that's what they are up to.." Milly replied.

"Alioth watched me work last time, now two of them are here. I'm glad that Alioth is starting to have an interest in something again!" Martin happily mentioned.

"That sounds wonderful, I am truly thankful! Let me know if you need something, I'll do anything to help Alioth to recover" Milly offered.

"I'll call again if there is any progress. Bye." Martin hung up the phone and went back to the garage.

"Sorry if it takes a while" Martin said to Rigel and Alioth.

"It's fine mr. Martin, we already looked at your tools while you are gone" Rigel responded while Alioth held a wrench.

"You curious lads, shall we start working?" Martin offered.

2.

First of all, Martin described every tool that he has in his shop. He gives its name and purpose then eventually demonstrates how to use it. Rigel and Alioth are definitely smart, Martin is even surprised that they can immediately name it when he tries to ask about what he discussed. For their young age, they sure have a different taste. That's what Martin thinks about the kids. Though he is quite right, he did not know that it all started when they found the robot.

They spent the whole afternoon learning the basic steps on repairing. Identifying the problem on why it is not working, carefully opening a machine, testing if the parts are broken through a digital tester. The next part is where it all gets tricky, the replacing of the busted parts.

"Listen carefully, it might take some time on how you can identify the value of a certain part. For example this resistor's value can be determined through its color" Martin said as he gave Rigel and Alioth a piece of resistor.

"Through its color? What do you mean?" Rigel asked while Alioth was taking down notes.

"Every color has a corresponding number. Black is 0, Brown is 1, Red is 2, Orange is 3, yellow is 4, Green is 5, Blue is 6, Violet is 7, Gray is 8, white is 9, while Gold and silver is for tolerance. It means the range of the resistor can handle" Martin explained.

"That sounds amazing! But why does it have 4 colors?" Rigel asked.

"Every band from left to right has value. The first 2 colors are the first 2 digits, the 3rd one is the multiplier while the 4th one is the tolerance. For example we have blue, green, red, gold. Blue is 6, green is 5, red is 2, gold is 5%, that means the value of this resistor is 6500 with 5% tolerance" Martin answered.

"This is hurting my head" Rigel complained as Alioth laughed at him.

"Don't worry, you can study all of these on the internet! It will take some time before getting used to it. You can also have a guide on the net while repairing something, just remember to always replace it with the same value" Martin reminded his students.

Hours of discussion occurred but it never was boring for Rigel and Alioth. The on the spot application while learning suited them best, that's why they learn quickly. Though they are still young and easily get tired.

"All this studying makes me hungry, I think we should head home" Rigel said to Alioth.

"My mouth is almost dry due to explaining too much hahaha" Martin mentioned.

"Thank you so much mr. Martin, we will come back again tomorrow!" Rigel said while Alioth nodded his head.

"I'm glad that you guys have fun in my shop, I'll wait for the both of you tomorrow!" Martin said as the boys head to Milly's house.

As they enter Milly's house, Milly can hear Rigel talking a bunch of jargon words she couldn't understand. Due to curiosity, she sneaks to observe. Milly saw Rigel and Alioth having a fun time. She immediately prepares the table because for her, telling stories while having dinner is the best bond for the family.

"The dinner is already ready! Is dad home?" Rigel asked her mother.

"Not yet sweety. He will probably be here tomorrow morning. Let's eat now while it is still hot" Milly replied.

"Ooooh Fried chicken and egg soup! We both love this!" Rigel excitedly said.

Alioth nods while smiling

Milly saw the sudden change of mood of Alioth. "So, How's your Friday?" she asked.

"IT WAS GREAT! But my head hurts after knowing all that stuff" Rigel answered.

Alioth giggles as he listens to Rigel.

"Alioth seems to understand it all" Milly said.

Alioth proudly showed his notes to Milly.

"Oooh you are taking notes as well. I did not know these things tho." Milly happily said.

"We are planning to go back tomorrow, I want to learn that sparkly thing mr. Martin does!" Rigel mentioned as Alioth nodded.

"Sparkly? That must be welding. Are you guys sure? That is dangerous" Milly warned.

"It will be fine, mr. Martin has all the safety tools that we will need!" Rigel replied.

"What if you get hurt? I'm worried about…" Milly stopped talking when she looked into Alioth and saw the sudden melancholy in his eyes. He realized that the kid already suffered way more than she could imagine. "Okay fine, but you will wear the clothes I'll prepare for you, understood?" Milly said as she changed her mind.

"REALLY? THANK YOU!" Rigel happily said as Alioth smiled back once again.

The next morning, Martin saw Rigel and Alioth, wearing long sleeves and cloth gloves. He immediately suspects that something is up as the boys approach his shop.

"Aaaahhh… What's with the get up?" Martin curiously asked.

"We are ready to weld!" Rigel excitedly answered as they, Rigel and Alioth, both mimic how Martin weld.

"I don't think you guys are quite ready for that. Welding is extremely dangerous for kids." Martin said.

"But mom allowed us to do it. It will also surprise my dad if Alioth and I suddenly can do complex things!" Rigel argued.

"Milly agreed to this?" Martin curiously asked.

"She did! She even prepared our clothes! you can call her if you want" Rigel insisted.

Alioth looked at Martin as if a puppy asking for something.

"Alright, come inside and I'll call Milly first" Martin said.

Rigel and Alioth joyfully entered the shop. After Martin and Milly's conversation, Martin is left with no choice. Martin promised that he will do his best to prevent any misfortune, and they agreed that both of them will be liable if something bad happened. After a couple of minutes, Martin goes back to the garage.

"I don't know what comes into your mind. It looks like you guys want to learn everything in a span of a week!" Martin complained.

"Mr. Martin, those sparkling things are cool! Dad will be proud once he knows that I can do that!" Rigel answered as Alioth looked determined as well.

"He is definitely proud of you since the day you were born. I'm sure the same way goes with Alioth. Fine, let's start! Do exactly what I say and everything will go smoothly!" Martin said.

Martin started to teach Rigel and Alioth how to attach two metal pieces through welding. He started explaining the proper use of safety gears: Welding glasses, gloves, sleeves, etc. Afterwards, Martin explained how dangerous it is, extra precautions are detailedly explained. Now, the demonstration takes place, right tools and equipment, putting two metals together carefully. Lastly, the angle grinder to smoothen the welded area.

Watching Martin work and explain both at the same time feels like poetry in motion for both Rigel and Alioth. After the presentation, it's time for Rigel and Alioth to try it. Guided by Martin, he teaches Rigel first. Since Rigel is old enough, he is just assisting from behind, telling him what to do. In a couple of minutes, Rigel made a mini triangle from the scraps of metal. They finally smoothen it up, leading to his first ever welded piece.

Up next is Alioth, Martin holds the hand of Alioth in order to completely guide him. He suddenly felt sad for Alioth since the kid is growing without his parents. Completely knowing Alioth's situation, Martin is trying his best to be more dependable. Showing a father figure that Alioth will never experience from his biological parents.

The hard work finally pays off, Rigel and Alioth both have their first creation thanks to Martin. Rigel and Alioth are very happy and proud, creating something that they couldn't do before. Martin finally felt relief since the day ended without any misfortunes. The joy on those kids' faces will be memorable, purely genuine and innocent.

3.

The weekends are finally coming to an end. Alioth went to a fancy restaurant, together with the whole family of Rigel. Milly and his husband Mathew Lavoie, a tall-dark skin toned man, treat Alioth like their own son. Rigel also wanted a brother, that's why he is fine with it. Of course, both of them were not rushing Alioth to accept them. They are giving him a space and patiently waiting for Alioth to open up with them. In that way, they can save Alioth from the trauma that he is currently having.

On the next day, Monday, Alioth decided to study this time. Using the phone that Mathew gave him, he browse, read, and watch numerous info about electronics. The phone was originally meant to be a way to communicate with his relatives but now he uses it productively. Day by day, something new sparks inside of Alioth. Something finally caught his interest, it doesn't completely help in terms of his problems but it's the small steps that finally pushes him to move forward.

Alioth's whole week is spent on reading as well as assessing the robot. For someone living alone, Alioth took that as an advantage to learn by himself.

Saturday finally came, Martin thought that the kids lost their interest but Rigel and Alioth were back to their game.

"Glad to see you boys back, how's your weekdays?" Martin asked.

"There are a lot of things going on. We are about to be a senior high, that's why teachers are giving loads of activities" Rigel complained.

"Sounds painful, how about you Alioth?" Martin continued asking.

Alioth gets his notebook on his mini backpack and hands it over to Martin

"Oh, you've been studying as well. These notes already have the basic knowledge about electronics. You really are a smart kid" Martin praised Alioth while patting his head.

Alioth smiled brightly, he feels like his efforts are being well recognized.

"So what do you want to learn now?" Martin asked.

"Beats me, maybe Alioth wants to learn something" Rigel answered.

Alioth flipped his notes and pointed to a phrase in his notebook.

Martin moves closer and reads the phrase "Power problems… You mean those machines that don't start up?" Martin clarifies.

"Oh, I remember we found this remote control toy and we don't know how to power it up!" Rigel fabricated a story in order to explain what Alioth wanted.

"Now I get it, where's the toy? Let's make it work on my repair shop" Martin suggested.

"Aaaahhmm… We kinda want to make it work by ourselves. You know for future purposes? When we encounter different toys, we can fix them immediately!" Rigel added more reasons.

Alioth giggles and nods to support Rigel's story.

"You boys sure have a lot of things that are going on. Fine, come inside and I'll teach you what I know" Martin said as the boys entered his shop.

"Robots or toys are usually powered by batteries for them to move freely, not plugging it to an outlet. There are 2 types of battery, the primary and secondary. The primary are the ones that are for single use only. Once they run out, you have to replace them with new ones. Secondary are the rechargeable ones. There are a lot of ways to charge the secondary batteries, some are from solar but mostly from an outlet. You boys should know the difference between those types in order to make your toys work again." Martin discussed.

"Ooooh, so the batteries on our remote to our tv are the primary while the batteries on our phones are secondary?" Rigel clarifies.

"Exactly, Identifying which is disposable and rechargeable is quite hard for beginners, make sure to read more on the internet to gain more tips. I classified them just by looking at it HA HA HA" Martin slightly bragged about his competence in electronics.

Alioth finds the discussion very informative. He feels that what Martin said was a piece that can help him solve his puzzle. A knowledge that helps him progress in making the robot work again.

The discussion continues as Martin demonstrates further about the difference of what he said. There has never been any dull moment for them. Learning is actually fun when you are interested in the subject. We learn in everything that we do, whether it's a hobby or a subject, as long as you gain information from it, it is considered learning. And that sums it all up on how these young boys are enjoying complex subjects. A clear objective will push you the more that you learn from it.

Martin noticed that the boys are legitimately having fun. When the day settles and the boys head home, Martin calls Milly to clarify some things.

"Good evening, are the boys already there?" Martin asked.

"Yeah, they are having dinner. What's the matter?" Milly replied.

"I just want to ask if you have tools there? Like mine." Martin added.

"Mathy has plenty of tools, though not as many as yours." Milly said.

"I guess Rigel can use them.. The boys are definitely having fun" Martin said with a melancholic voice.

"It also surprised me that he is interested in that, I'm sure he'll use those tools someday. Why did you ask?" Milly responded.

"I'm just wondering if there will be for Alioth" Martin answered.

"Sure, I can buy those for Alioth" Milly said.

"No no, let me give Alioth those things. I have plenty of tools here. I just ask if Mathew has those because it would be unfair for Rigel if there's nothing for him to use" Martin argued.

"How thoughtful of you, let me know if you need something else" Milly happily said.

"Okay, thanks" Martin hangs up the phone. "Now, time to call the hood". Martin said as he scrolled to his contacts to call every electrician friend that he knows.

The next day comes, Alioth and Rigel go straight to Martin's house. It was the first time that they saw the repair shop was not yet open at 9 am in the morning. Alioth and Rigel knock on the door but no one seems to answer. They thought that maybe Martin was out to buy groceries or some sort. Alioth suddenly frawn.

"Hmmm.. Want to go around the neighborhood? We can visit everyone here! Maybe by the time we visit everyone, mr. Martin is already home!" Rigel said as he tried to comfort Alioth.

Alioth analyzed what Rigel said, he realized that Rigel might be right.

Rigel noticed that he caught Alioth's attention. "Besides, studying too much is not good, we need to play sometimes! What if we call it a day off? Let's have some fun!" Rigel continues to persuade Alioth.

Alioth slowly smiles and eventually agrees with Rigel.

"Yosh, Let's go around the town!" Rigel energetically shouted.

The kids immediately head to their own houses to get their bikes. Afterwards, they met at Martin's house and pedaled their way in every corner of the town.

The neighborhood is definitely peaceful, it might be small but everyone who lives there cares for each other, making it a warm place to stay. The boys' first stop is at a small grocery store owned by a Filipino family. They call it "sari-sari store", it's like a lesser version of a convenient store, popular in the Philippines. But since Christian and his wife Mary are the only ones who have that kind of store in the neighborhood, the business actually clicks. Making short errands possible.

"Good morning mr. Christian!" Rigel greeted Christian.

"Zup Rigel, oh there's Alioth as well, Maa! Nandito si Alioth at Rigel" Christian replied as he spoke Tagalog to call his wife.

"What do you want, Alioth? I have a dollar here, we can buy some candies here with just a couple of cents." Rigel asked Alioth.

Mary comes out and sees Rigel and Alioth, she smiles brightly due to the fact that they rarely see Alioth. "Oo nga… It's nice to see the both of you, do you want something?" Mary said.

"We would like some flat tops please" Rigel answered as he gave his dollar.

Christian did not accept the dollar and said "No no no, I'm in a good mood today, you can have these chocolates for free! Just don't tell the others ey?".

Rigel and Alioth happily accepted the free chocolates and thanked both Christian and Mary for their kindness. The boys continued to pedal around the town.

"Mukang masaya si Alioth ngayon ah (Looks like Alioth is happy today)" Christian said.

"Nag aalala nga ako sa kanya, sana maging maayos na kalagayan niya (I am worried about him, I hope that his situation become better)" Mary replied.

While eating their free chocolates, Alioth and Rigel happily sprinting around the neighborhood. Some of the residents greeted them along the way, others offered to stop by and grab some snacks. Their whole day is filled with warmth and of course, full belly, due to the kindness of everyone who lives there. They don't have the chance to interact with Alioth ever since the accident, that's why when they saw Rigel roaming around with Alioth, in a bright mood, they grabbed their chance and expressed some positivity to the boys.

-Everyone knows what happened, it even got to a newspaper with a headline "A Story From A Small Town". A tragedy that will forever be remembered.