The family finally landed at Tokyo airport. Helen took a deep breath, feeling the air of the land of the Sun, and looked at the sea that surrounded the city, in contrast to the buildings that skimmed the skies. She wasn't dreaming at that moment: what she saw was real, or rather, was the fulfillment of her dream. As it wasn't rushing hour, they decided to go by train, because it was the best means of transportation, since it cut across the metropolis. They settled into a hotel downtown and, shortly after the lunch of the first day, they were strolling and getting to know the beauties of the city.

After strolling through the streets and shopping malls, they returned to the hotel to rest. Lorena sat in a rocking chair that was in her bedroom and then fell asleep. Sophia decided to read a book about the Japanese culture she had bought on the walk that afternoon.

Merko, Nicholas, and Zara gathered in the living room and felt that this was the perfect opportunity to go out with Helen for the great moment of revelation.

"Helen, I need to talk to you, my dear!"

"Mom, I'm so happy to be in Japan," she interrupted Zara, euphoric.

"Yes, daughter. It is a unique moment and we still have a lot to see, but do you remember that I would tell you everything that was needed about your ability to read minds and move objects? Me, your father and Merko are going to show you who we really are."

The girl's eyes widened and she sweated cold, worried about the truth that seemed so hard to tell.

"Trust us, my child." Zara said, looking at her.

Then, the mother looked at Nicholas and Merko, who nodded.

Everyone wore their coats, picked up backpacks with food, water, visors, trash bags, towels, cell phones with extra batteries, and all the necessary mountaineering equipment. Then, Merko placed the bracelet on the girl's wrist, pressed a button together with another one, on the bracelet of his own wrist. So did Nicholas and Zara. In a few moments, to the girl's utter disbelief, they were on top of the world's most famous Japanese hill. By the time they arrived, the trails weren't open to the public because of the low temperatures. The high place where they materialized was overcast and they could barely see each other amidst the white expanse.

"How did we get here so fast?" The girl asked. "And how cold is it here? I'm freezing..."

"We're on top of Mount Fuji. But, soon, we'll be inside it," Zara said.

Helen's eyes widened, feeling fear and curiosity at the same time. She breathed deeper in the rarefied air. The wind was blowing in her face, and the thermal sensation was even colder than the usual temperature. Even though they were well-groomed, the cold chilled their bodies. It was then that Merko said:

"Position the latitude and longitude that I will determine. We'll soon be in a much nicer place."

Zara touched Helen's bracelet and they did as he said. When they noticed, they were already inside Mount Fujiyama, in a nice, warm place.

There were sophisticated equipment and technology of the future on the two floors that the base occupied. Behind the mountain, a secret entrance allowed to hide a fighter ship in the insides of the shelter. Holographic computers, along with furniture for sleeping and resting, fit the walls of the ambiances. To Nicholas, all that technology was already peculiar, but to Helen... She was looking around in bewilderment, trying to understand what was happening.

Merko occasionally checked out the aliens' bases on planet Earth and it had been some time since he had last checked Japan's base. But thanks to the master computer everything worked perfectly.

Zara looked at Helen and, noticing her a startled expression, said:

"My daughter, we need to have a long talk, and I know you're a bit confused..."

"Mother, we didn't get a plane, nor a car, nor a ship, nothing, and in a heartbeat we're on Mt. Fuji, within the mountain I love! Are we in a dream? And what place is this? It looks like a command room on a spaceship."

"That is all true. We needed to show you a world of which we are a part. Remember the skeleton in the classroom and the thoughts of the other people you've listened to? Assembling the skeletal parts and moving objects are powers that you have and this is called telekinesis. Listening to the thoughts and talking to the mind is called telepathy," Zara said.

"Mother, how can I do this? I don't know anyone who does this. Is there something inexplicable to me?"

"No, daughter. You're completely normal. I'll tell you a little story so that you better understand what's going on," Zara said, raising a holographic screen with the thought and a simple touch in the air.

The image of the human evolutionary chain appeared and she continued:

"You must have studied the ideas of a scientist named Charles Darwin. He showed that everything in nature is in constant evolution and that the species that best adapt to the environment are the ones that have a greater chance of surviving. The inherited characteristics that facilitate this adaptation are strategic advantages that are transmitted to the offspring and make possible the reproduction of the species. To conclude better, Homo sapiens is obviously not the last human species. We have evolved..."

"But where are you getting, mother?"

"Daughter, it's logical that this evolution wouldn't stop here. The man of the future cannot be as we are today. In the past, the changes were triggered by the discovery of fire, use of tools and groupings in society. When they learned how to cook, plant, and use technology, the men had more time to use their brain. Imagine how we'll be in the future; with all the technologies we have invented in the last few centuries."

"Obviously we'll change; I agree with these ideas. I'm studying these subjects at school and I already know some things about Biology and Evolution. However, I didn't understand what this has to do with me. We came to Japan to stroll around and did a trip that I can't understand even now. What about grandma Lorena and Sophia? Where are they?" Little Helen kept asking.

Nicholas, quite nervous, couldn't control himself and said, directly:

"Your grandfather Merko and your mother are beings of the future!"

"What? You can only be joking." She stared at him, wide-eyed. "What about you, daddy? What about me?"

The girl was frightened. She felt palpitations and drops of sweat dripped from her forehead, she was still and pale. She couldn't express a word. She just watched the facts.

Suddenly she screamed in a trembling voice, her eyes fixed on her mother, lost in feelings of disbelief:

"You mean you're Ets?"

"No. We are developed humans from a distant future. We came to visit planet Earth and I met his father, while Merko fell in love with your grandmother. From the love between your father and I you were born, my dear, and I waited for you to grow up so I could tell you everything without confusing your head. But your powers began to awaken." Zara touched Helen's temple.

"My daughter, that explains why you have this ability to communicate with the mind and use telekinesis," she said, using telepathy.

"I think it's best if she sees it with her own eyes. Let's transmute ourselves, just me and Zara," Merko interrupted.

In a moment, they were transformed into their original forms.

Helen was even more terrified. She looked at the big eyes, the head and everything that had changed in their bodies.

She cried out in awe:

"I can only be dreaming. Wake me up, because it's more than enough for this day. This is crazy!"

"We are different from other human beings. This is how everyone will be in the future. We love you, my dear. We want to live happily with you here on planet Earth. As for your grandmother Lorena and your aunt Sophia, they are humans and don't know of our true alien condition. You'll also need to keep this secret. As for your father, he was born here on this planet just like you."

Nicholas remained in the human form to make the girl more comfortable. But Helen felt strange. "Is all this that I'm living a reality?", she thought pressing her lips together.

Then she rubbed her eyes to see if she would wake up. After looking at everything around her and understanding that she was among the people she trusted most in life, she agreed with her mother. The only truth she knew at the time was that Zara was the person she believed the most in the world. Although the penny hadn't yet dropped that she was living all that, she felt different and with a certain sense of power. Helen went on to say:

"It's all right. I'm good at keeping secrets. I never told anyone I heard voices or moved objects. I know they'd call me crazy. Now if I say that I'm a daughter of Ets, then, yes, I will suffer bullying for the rest of my life. But do you read minds and move objects as I was able to do?"

Merko held out his hand, catching the girl's attention. He moved a few cups that were on a table and even the water inside them separated from the container; the liquid contained in the glasses floated in the base's space forming bubbles that rose to the ceiling, spreading all over the place. It was indeed a magnificent sight.

"Stop showing off, Merko. Helen needs to understand the truth. That's a lot of information for a preteen girl," Zara said.

"I've always wanted to be different from my school friends. But it didn't have to be that much!"

Slowly she calmed down and even with that countenance, she was already feeling more comfortable. She thought of everything she could do from that moment, including the possibility of traveling to space. Everything seemed incredible to her, wonderful.

She watched them all for a little time, startled, as if this was all a dream. Finally, to break the silence, her parents proposed:

"How about a bit of a walk around Tokyo?" said Nicholas.

"We still have a lot of things to explain to Helen and we can still get to know many beautiful places," Zara commented.

And Merko concluded:

"Even with everything we can explain to Helen, which will be no small thing, the greatest changes will indeed occur within her own mind. Our little girl will need to understand what is real because truth is the only thing that lasts forever."

During all the time they stayed there, Zara tried to teach her daughter how to deal with the new discoveries, but it wasn't easy. How would the girl accept that new reality overnight? Observing while Nicholas showed Helen the location of the planet Life in the computer holograms, Zara confided to Merko:

"I'm afraid Helen won't tolerate such a large amount of information in so little time. I think it'll be very difficult for her to live among the other children not being a human like them."

"She's an intelligent girl and we'll continue to answer her questions through all her life. There's a lot to be said and we'll have plenty of time for this," Merko said, before starting to turn everything off for them to go away. "Z7, keep the systems in latent state and put the base in invisible mode as soon as we're gone."

"Yes, Commander Merko," said the female voice of the central computer.

Then they touched their bracelets and showed up at a restaurant in downtown Tokyo. Zara and Helen materialized in the ladies' room, which was empty, while Merko and Nicholas went to the men's room, also empty at the time. They left and came to a street downtown in the city. Then they went to the hotel, where they invited Lorena and Sophia for a walk. After all, the two didn't go there with them to be left out. It was already late afternoon and after the tour they would also dine at some typical restaurant.

They went to the streets and soon fell in love with the blossoming cherry trees. As it was March, the great apex of the famous flowering trees, it seemed that the whole Japanese country was flourishing.

On the way, Helen looked at the flowers and commented:

"I always wanted to see the famous Japanese cherry trees... How beautiful they are!"

"The beauty of these flowers is fascinating!" said Sophia, also admired.

"There's a lot more things for us to see. Let's continue the walk," Merko said, looking at the charms of the city.

And they continued to discover the Japanese wonders: their cuisine and the most famous tourist places. During the hours, the girl grew calmer and the walk distracted her. At night they returned to the hotel. When they arrived, Sophia turned to Helen and said:

"What about you, my favorite niece, did you enjoy the ride?"

"Auntie, I've seen everything I wanted, and I'm sure I know a lot more than I knew before."

Sophia, without understanding correctly, smiled sweetly:

"I'm glad you enjoyed the ride, my dear!"

That night, all the travelers who knew the truth about Helen went to sleep thinking about the girl's future. Her life was beginning to change with the new discoveries. Helen could hardly sleep, thinking of everything she had discovered. That seemed so surreal! Maybe it was a crazy, funny truth, or she would wake up from a dream and return to being the normal girl from planet Earth, like all her classmates. Lying in her bed, she stared at the painting on the wall and tried to move it with her mind. It started to vibrate, but then stopped, when she scared herself and the piece fell to the ground.

"My God! I did a foolishness..."

She jumped out of bed to see if the frame had broken, but it only had a small scratch where it had hit the floor. Helen carefully replaced it.

Someone opened the door. Quickly, the girl went back to the bed and went under the sheet.

"Helen, are you awake? Everything okay here? Looks like I heard a noise..." Nicholas said.

"I'm fine, dad. It must've been something in the street."

"Sleep well, my dear! Have a good night and sleep with the angels."

"Thank you, Dad. Good night!"

During that week the whole family strolled. They had a lot of fun getting to know the wonders of Japan. In every opportunity they were alone, Merko, Zara, and Nicholas talked to the girl, trying to make her comfortable with the knowledge of her hybrid condition. And they tried to explain what planet Life was like to kill Helen's curiosity.

At the weekend, it was time to return to Los Angeles and continue their lives. But before they said farewell to the Land of the Rising Sun, Merko took advantage of the quiet of the night to return to the base inside mount Fujiyama. Again, he tried to contact planet Life without success. He started to get worried.

"Something is very wrong in this story. I always managed to contact my friends." He thought with a strange impression.

Merko returned to the hotel thoughtfully. He was determined to find some way to communicate with his planet.

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