In The Stars Brilliance — Part Five
By Georgina Kamsika
Upon waking, Mehtab checks the news. It’s a mistake. A punch to the gut. Her namesake, the famous Bollywood star Mehtab Khan, has died. The actress lived a good life, better than most, but still. The loss hurts more than Mehtab could have expected; any hint of her that remained on Earth is now gone.
But no messages from home. Is anyone left at ISRO? Are these news packets automated? No replies to the long-distance waves she sends Lakini either. Has Lakini landed? Are her comms down? Mehtab’s planet is a bust; but perhaps Lakini has had more luck. Water or maybe a suitable starting atmosphere: there are so many ways she might succeed. The ISRO might approve a terraforming mission, perhaps send one of the waiting colony ships to Lakini’s planet. And then? There are no promises for star-seeders. No expectations for rescues or reunions.
Lakini. Soft skin and yielding flesh. Always too thin, she was half-starved by the time of her launch, but forever beautiful. Lakini standing next to their bed, the subtle curves of a champagne glass shining in the morning light. That wordless moment of parting. Soft sun on her face, a chiaroscuro of sharp contours. Light of a star now lost to them both.
Perhaps a joyous colonist will warm Lakini now—tease out that brilliant smile, celebrate the success of Lakini’s mission. Mehtab wishes everything for her. As long as one of them survives, the universe will not be too cold. This is the consolation they embraced before Mehtab’s launch.
Eventually Mehtab’s food will run out, her habitat will fail beyond her ability to repair it, and she will die. She has no idea how long she has before joining the rest of humanity. If she can join them. Will her soul find its way back from this alien world to Earth—to reincarnate? Does she even want it to? There are worse ways to spend eternity than traversing the stars.
Georgina Kamsika is a speculative fiction writer born in Yorkshire, England, to Anglo-Indian immigrant parents and has spent most of her life explaining her English first name, Polish surname and South Asian features. She graduated from the Clarion West workshop in 2012, was the UNESCO Cities of Literature Writer for Wonju in 2022.
As a second-generation immigrant, her work often utilises the speculative element to examine power structures that are mirrored in the real world, touching on issues of race, class, and gender. She can be found at kamsika.com and @GKamsika on most socials.
Copyright © 2025 Georgina Kamsika