Something strange was happening in Gold Field. It always was. That was why Kai Davis had started his weekly magazine the Chronicles of Gold Field, about his unique town. No day was like another in Gold Field. And so about two months back, Kai got the idea of starting a weekly booklet about the events that took place in his town. The idea was at first treated with disdain but, as the weeks passed, it started picking up and the booklets became a town magazine, printed with a picture of a goldfinch, the town mascot, that every citizen took joy in reading.
When Kai had started writing the magazine, it had been just him and his friend Owen. Owen’s mum was the manager of a radio station and had helped publicize their project. They wrote about the time that a flock of exotic birds got loose. They described the circumstances leading to blue lemons being sold in the marketplace. They wrote about anything peculiar that caught their attention. But when the magazine became more popular, all the town residents started getting involved in its writing. They kept discussing issues that should be exposed or asking to write articles for the magazine. And it wasn’t just that; after the first few weeks of writing the Chronicles of Gold Field, Kai realised that it was a time-consuming task on top of his studies. But he loved the project and didn’t want to give up on it. So, he continued struggling to put together the magazine and have it ready every Sunday.
That week, Kai was walking around Gold Field looking for things to write about and people to interview. He had his phone out to record his thoughts before typing them out. Beside him was Owen, pointing out interesting things around them. “Can we write about Professor Williams dying his hair electric blue? Everyone would love that!” He said, grinning expectantly. “Sadly, we can’t. It’s rude and no one really cares,” replied Kai. Owen shrugged, “Okay, but-” He was interrupted by a door flung open. “Boys!” came a cheerful call and they turned to see Jaime, the town botanist. “Are you making your rounds for the Chronicles? Come in! I have something to show you.” He said, beckoning them towards his house. Kai and Owen followed him into his garden. The botanist gestured to a collection of potted plants. There were plants of all varieties, but that wasn’t what made both boys gasp. All the flowers growing from the plants were transparent! Every sunflower, hibiscus and rose! “Wow.” Said Kai, admiringly. “These are gorgeous.” “Thank you!” Jaime said, beaming, “I’ve been growing them for the town fair. I thought you might want to mention these in your magazine!” Kai thanked him profusely and stepped out after recording a short minute-long report on the flowers.
They had just stepped back onto the footpath when they were greeted by another call. Ashley Robin marched down the street towards them and slapped Kai on the shoulder, “Davis, I was looking for you.” she said, in an accusing tone, like she suspected Kai of going out of his way to avoid her, which was as insulting as it was true. Ashley Robin had an unpleasant habit of sneaking up on Kai and demanding that he carry her complaints about the town council in his magazine. Usually, her complaints were numerous and irrelevant, so Kai didn’t feel too guilty about sneaking away whenever he could.
“Oh. What did you want?” He asked her, now, unenthusiastically. “Well,” She began, “I wanted you to print a request to change the town mascot.” Owen gave a laugh from beside Kai, “Why? What’s wrong with the Gold Field goldfinch?” He asked. Ashley frowned, “Nothing. It's just that the Council has a nasty habit of keeping a flock of goldfinches caged so that they can display them during town fairs. It’s quite inhuman.” Kai paused in his automatic dismissal. She did have a point. Birds weren’t meant to be caged and the huge number of birds the Council kept chained, was inhuman. “Okay, we’ll mention it.” He said. Ashley looked slightly surprised but pleased. “Good.” She said, “That would be good.” And she turned back towards her house.
“That was actually quite a good suggestion.” Said Owen. “Yeah, but we can’t actually ask the Council to change our mascot. We can just write about this and ask everyone in Gold Field to petition for the freeing of the caged goldfinches.” Kai returned, looking for the recorder app on his phone. “Ooh, yeah! If it's a townwide movement the Council is more likely to take action.” Kai motioned for him to stop talking and pressed record, “Citizens of Gold Field, our town is famous for its unique mascot; the goldfinch. But are we doing right by this magnificent bird? Our Town Council keeps countless goldfinches confined within bars, but shouldn’t we respect these birds? Let them be free? If you want to help unshackle the birds of our town, sign the petition demanding the freedom of our goldfinches.” He paused. “In other news, Jaime Flores, our town botanist, has grown another batch of lovely flowers for the town fair. They are quite ordinary in all aspects, except for the fact that they’re transparent. You heard me right! -”
“Kai.” Owen interrupted. “You’re doing it again. They can’t hear you through a newspaper. You’re speaking like a radio host.” Kai groaned, “Sorry. I didn’t realise. Forget it, I’ll just edit later.” But Owen didn’t move. He stared for a second and then whooped, “Why didn’t we think of this before!” He exclaimed. “What?” Asked Kai, nonplussed. “Why are we writing a magazine when we could just be recording a radio show? Think about it; it takes less time and you’d probably enjoy it more!” He said, smiling, “My mother would probably agree to give you a weekly slot for the Chronicles, she loves your magazine.” Kai didn’t say anything for a minute and then gave a cheer. “That’s a great idea! I would love to host a radio show. Do you really think your mum would agree?” Owen shrugged, “Yeah, but let’s ask her. Come on.” As they headed down the street towards Owen’s house, Kai couldn’t help but grin in anticipation. A radio show of his own! He knew just how to start it, “Hello, listeners. Something strange is happening in Gold Field...”
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