Laika

Moscow

The sun was setting. It was cold and Laika was hungry again.

“food, more food.”

There were others nearby.

“water.”

She’d been attacked the night before. 

“this isn’t food.”

The others had been after her for a piece of bread.

“do they have bread?”

She flips her head around suddenly. Different light now. From down the alley.

“food?? there could be others.”

Laika wanders towards the new light to a fire on the street. The others huddled around it.

“you have food? this is warm.”

A new sound. A can or a bottle. The others bark defiantly then run. Laika just turns around. Curious.

“do you have food? are you here for me?”

A man emerges from the dark. He crouches down, holds out a piece of bread.

“Hello, dog. I’m Yuri."

Laika examines him for a moment. Takes the bread. 

He picks her up and Laika buries her head in his arms.

Training

Laika wakes to the sounds of barking.

“what is it!?”

A large white ROOM with 4 cages. Other dogs in cages are carried in and set next to her cage.

“hello? is there food? what’s happening? hello?”

Faceless men bring food and water and set them inside the other cages. They leave quietly.

The other dogs bark and rattle their cages. Yuri, brings food directly to Laika.

“food! water! it's cold here.”

Another man, Oleg walks into the room and straight to Yuri. He’s taller.

“Has she resisted in any way?”

“No, Oleg. She was the only one who didn’t try to bite my hand off.”

“Give her a couple more days.”

“i like you, do you have more food?”

“Let’s take them to the Facility.”

Yuri pulls out a syringe with his right hand and extends his left hand to Laika.

Laika, licks Yuri’s hand, never scared, falls asleep.

Yuri confidently opens the door to the immense Facility. Mechanical devices crust the walls and ceiling. All the dogs, including Laika are at the end of the Facility.  Laika notices Yuri walk in, runs ahead but is snapped back by her leash. The other dogs stay back.

Yuri and the others surround Laika. They whisper to each other.

“You know, all the other dogs ran away as soon as they saw me. She just stood there,” he said.

Oleg, sits down next to her and pets her face.

"friend! is there water?"

“Do you think we can get her ready in time, Yuri?”

"Are we ready, Oleg? November 1st?” 

“What do we call her? Karla wants a name for the papers.”

Yuri pets her face, “I don’t know. Laika...but she never barks. So it’s funny.”

"Sure, whatever," as Oleg and Yuri walk away, whispering to the others. 

Another man picks her up, methodically takes off her leash, walks her to a cage and sets her inside.

“hello. it’s cold in here.”

Rumbling followed by a loud bang. Metal grinding violently against metal. Loud, rhythmic pounding succession of screeching. The room is dark except for red pulsing lights.

"what!? what!? what!? what is this?!"

Laika is not in her cage anymore.

"noise! what!? where are my friends!?"

The noise stops suddenly. The red lights are off.

"Lights!" a voice yells.

The bright lights blast on and blind her.

“where? where? what!? what!?”

Yuri comes in through the door, approaches Laika, and, with a sympathetic ability, injects her belly. 

"You’re alright, girl.

Laika falls flat in his arms.

Blasts of metal, louder and louder this time. The red light, now synched with the screeching wail, pierces the air. Laika was in a cage this time, a Centrifuge.

“what!?!? what is this!?”

The rumbles continue as Laika still shakes and moves around in the dark. 

“what is happening here?”

These noises in the dark have become longer and more frequent.

The lights blast on suddenly as Yuri rushes in. He fans Laika with a newspaper.

“What was that, Oleg!? Her heart rate and temperature were everywhere!”

Laika pants uncontrollably. Sweating, out of breath.

“water!? water! where am I?”

Oleg, unseen and over a loudspeaker, “Give her some water then! Start again.”

A Technician brings water in a bottle and very unskillfully puts it into her mouth.

“No, Oleg. She needs rest!” says Yuri.

The Technician quickly learns how to pour water into her mouth without spilling.

“water is good. i need to walk.”

Laika licks the bottle and the Technician’s fingers.

“She’ll be dead before we get her out of the Facility.”

“She’ll be fine.”

“i know that voice.”

“Oleg, I am telling you if we keep at this rate, she’ll die. Give her a moment.”

Yuri walks out to the room Laika is in.

The Technician is petting her now. They lock eyes. He has a moment of sympathy before Yuri pushes him away and unstraps her from the Centrifuge. 

"Start again!" Oleg’s voice shocks both men in the room.

After looking at each other for a moment, Yuri and the Technician recover from the voice.

Laika buries her head in his shoulders again.

Barking and crying.

“do you know where we are?”

Laika wakes to hear another dog barking at her from somewhere in the room. She can sense other dogs in cages nearby.

It was dark again. The exception was the red light.

“who’s that?” says Laika.

“do you know where we are?” says the Other One.

“who is that? are you a friend?” she says.

“did they find you outside too?”

A Young Man opens the door abruptly - “Shut up!”- and turns the lights on and off.

He turns the lights on faster now. Lika screams and wails.

“what!? what!? what!? where? who? food? is there food today?” Laika says anxiously.

“Shut up, shut up, shut up!” the Young Man screams again

“where did they find you?” says the Other One again.

“food. need food. need to walk.”

Laika isn’t scared, but she’s anxious.

Shouting, loud bangs and red lights flashing again.

“what!? what!? no more!”

Laika is seated now. She’s inside a much smaller centrifuge, strapped with little movement.

The banging stops but the shouting gets louder.

“Oleg, this is the last time you do this! We can’t keep this up!”

“food! water!”

“She will die. Oleg, I swear she will.”

“What do you think we’re doing?”

“water! food! walk!”

“What do you mean?”

“How much time do you think she has, Yuri?” he says pointing to the calendar. 

“Just sedate her and come back.”

Dimitri kicks a chair to the corner. He stands there, staring at Laika, who only twitches her head. They look at each other. The moment is gone when he abruptly removes the safety from a syringe he was holding and carefully injects her.

“food? will we go outside?”

“Look at that! She never used to-

Laika fades to black.

Home

A door opens and closes. The noise was different.

“what!? more food!? where are?”

Yuri is holding her in his arms under a blanket.

“You’re awake. Good girl.”

Another door opens. Immediately warmth in the air. The blanket comes off. 

In front of her is a fireplace and two children on each side. The little boy and girl rush after her.

 “A puppy!” the little girl screams.

“oh! smaller faces! this is nice.”

The little boy brings food and water in a bowl.

“Does she have a name?” he says.

“Laika” says Yuri. “Play with her. You can stay up all night with her if you like.”

“food. i like this.”

“Let her sit next to the fire.”

“thank you. thank you for food.”

Laika jumps up to Yuri who picks her up and holds her tightly.

“is this home?”

He stares into her eyes and, for a brief moment, Laika licks his face but Yuri loses all function of his arms and immediately causes him to drop her to the floor.

Laika looks back, and smiles. She then rushes away and kisses the children.

“this is so warm.”

The little boy brings a blanket and a chew toy.

“this isn’t food.”

Laika discards it and runs to kiss the little girl.

“I want to keep you forever!”

The children bring more food and water. They lay next to her and pet her as she settles into the blanket.

“Just play with her.” 

Laika

A loud bang. Swooshing and rumbling deep from below. Shaking now. 

“what!? what!? what!? where am I!?”

Laika moves about in the Capsule again.

“red light! red light!”

Laika, accustomed to the red light following the rumbling, is completely in the dark.

“who is it?”

The rumbling stops suddenly.

“is this over?”

A loud swooshing accompanied by a groan, moving closer each second.

“what is this!?!?”

Suddenly, Laika is thrown to the floor. A sound louder and more terrifying than she’s ever heard rushes from below and passes through her. Metal crashing and scraping against metal creates a deafening effect that pops her ears.

“this isn’t….”

Another bang, rushes through her, louder and louder than before. 

Light suddenly flows through a window above her.

“light! light!”

She waits until she is strong enough to stand on all four legs. Or the rumbling? She stretches her hind legs to peer over but immediately turns back down from the brightness. She puts her head down in horror.

“my eyes!? what is this!!?”

Weightlessness…

“what!? what!?”

Laika floats above to the level of the window. She flails her limbs in confusion. She only floats up for a moment. She had forgotten about the restraints.

“i need to leave this. i don't know what this is!"

Below her, on the floor, a mechanical tube moves up towards her a few inches and stops. A needle ejects from within the tube and nearly pricks her.

“no! no! no!”

Laika flails her legs helplessly but manages to move her body a few centimeters above the needle, still floating weightlessly. The needle ejects a clear liquid that floats just below her belly and moves up around her sides.

"it's hot! why am I hot in here!?"

Above her, a fan clicks on. Clicks off.

Laika, looking out at the massive blue marble below looks below where she was sitting and sees a photograph of Yuri and his Children.

Laika is breathing heavily now. Her heart rate was almost twice the normal rate.

"it’s dark..."

From up above her, Yuri comes in, calmly from the speaker: 

"Laika!? Laika, it’s me! Laika!? You’ll be ok.”

She calmly falls asleep as she falls back to Earth as the sun begins to shine through the window again.