Nika is flying to Mars (part 1)

Part 2 --->

Nika couldn't fall asleep. It was 5 am and she was still thinking about this and that. There were lots of thoughts and dreams in her head and she desperately hoped for some of them to come true, as all of us do when we are just 18.

Although it was 5 am here, in Tokyo, it was still 11 pm in Moscow from where she arrived several hours ago. It's funny, her friend Natasha sent her a text saying that Nika is already in 'tomorrow', the 4th of October, and she's still in ‘today’, it was like a message from yesterday.

Very weird feeling.

She opened the window: it was a beautiful dawn, kind of red. And she remembered that she just had a dream about a big beautiful star high in the sky. Or was it a dream? She had troubles sleeping so she couldn't even tell anymore.

In several hours she'll have to get up and go to have a breakfast with her mom, sister and little brother. They stayed together in the small hostel in Tokyo: her mother, Mary and her older sister, Julia, were attending conference on space technologies; there was a very long and scientific name which Nika couldn't remember, too boring. She was never into science and cosmic stuff, hm, there were enough of scientists in her family: her father was an astronaut, he died 12 years ago, in Baikonur, her mom and now her sister, who was 27, were working in the Russian Institute of Space and her little bother Max, who was 13, was also into science, although he preferred sci-fi films and comics.

Nika on the other hand was more into literature and art: she loved studying English and History at school and now was attending the first year of Moscow State University with a major in English philology. It wasn't quite clear what she would do once she's graduated but she didn't worry about that. Well, she didn't really think a lot about future.

She was a day dreamer and, as most of teenagers, she thought that she is very weird, strange and doesn't belong to this society. Right now, at 5 am in a foreign city she felt very lonely. It seemed to her that no one could understand her and no one tried.

Her mother was very surprised when Nika asked if she could go with them to Tokyo. Usually Nika didn't like travelling with the family and especially with her annoying little brother. Besides scientific stuff was always very boring to her. Her mother, Maria, didn't have a clue that Nika was going to Tokyo just because she hoped to meet her favorite musical band, which was in Tokyo for their October tour. As most of girls of her age she had a passion for one band, she was really into it: she knew all the songs, had their official t-shirts and posters all over her room. Her mom thought that everyone had something like that and there is no need to worry. At least she wasn’t into vampires or Emo. Besides this passion of hers gave her a reason to study English.

That’s one of the reasons why Nika couldn’t sleep on this beautiful Sunday morning. She was thinking of him, the front man of the band, she was picturing how she would go for a walk around Tokyo and accidently run into him. She was dreaming what she would say to him and what he would say to her. It was very exciting. She had too many ideas. So Nika decided to write her thoughts down – TOP - Think on Paper, that’s what her teacher always told her. It will help her relax and also kill some time.

“My king, I seek for you. I'm your savior. And you are mine. Come to me. Find me. I'm here to help you and love you. Unconditionally. And you are going to save me from here, from this universe. I know - you can help me to get free from this prison of loneliness. We are like two lonely wolves. No, like eagles – we would fly.
No, I am not an eagle, I am a woman and I know I can make a man happy.
I can be your friend, my king. Find me. And I will give you some time of peace. Some time of escape. And I will be a wise and interesting person to talk to. And I will give you great advises. And you will give me confidence and support, oh do I need it? Your confidence and support? Just one or two smiles and silent nods once in a while, so I know that I am doing everything right.
Find me, my king, find me. In the streets of Tokyo on this lovely morning. I will not panic or ask for an autograph or a picture. I will not need anything from you, neither will you. But I can be your friend, my King, I am equal, yet different. I was born as a queen, not yours, yet a queen. On the crossroads of Asia and Europe, on the border of Russia and Kazakhstan I started the end of my beginning. I was named for a victorious goddess – Nika – and I can bring you victory in this war.
We have matching greatness, my king. Hunt for me in the streets of Tokyo on this lovely morning, you'll recognize me, I will hold a map of the world in my hand.”

Nika reread what she wrote and was very pleased with it. It sounded right. He will hear her thoughts. She put the pen down and closed her eyes.

“Good bye, my beautiful blue planet, I am out of here.” – was her thought and then she fell asleep.