Monday, December 26, 2016

"Control the Future" scene 18 part 2 and scene 19

"CONTROL THE FUTURE"
by D. M. Larson

Buy the book on Amazon.com ISBN-13: 978-1540666581or
purchase a low cost PDF from Sellfy.com


 
SCENE 18 (PART 2)
(BAKER’s time traveling device starts beeping)


JONES (CONT.)
What’s that?


BAKER
We’re coming up on something. A critical moment I believe.


JONES
I’ve heard about that. They decided to get rid of that function later on. It’s not very reliable.


BAKER
That doesn’t mind we can’t take a look.


JONES
So this means something important is about to happen.


BAKER
If my old technology is right.


JONES
Not old… just… obsolete.


BAKER
Obsolete… nice.


JONES
Look. It’s young Ash.


BAKER
He found his comic.


JONES
That’s not good.


(ASH and ANNIE enter from oppostie sides of the stage. They see each other)


ANNIE
You got a dollar?


ASH
I had 5… but I bought a comic.


ANNIE
A comic… can’t eat that.


ASH
I wasn’t supposed to buy it.


ANNIE
Then why did you?


ASH
Some old guy died in the store… and it got me thinking… maybe that could be me one day.


ANNIE
We all die.


ASH
Right… so it’s important to make the most of living.


ANNIE
Yup, I’m living the high life myself out here.


ASH
Why do you live out here? Aren’t there places you can go for help?


ANNIE
I don’t want their kind of help. The kind of help I got from there was worse than living out here. I’d rather be on my own. At least I can control what happens to me.


ASH
That’s what I want too… control. That’s what caught my eye in this comic. They had a quote in it. “Who controls the past controls the future. Who controls the present controls the past.”


ANNIE
That sounds like he wants to be in control of everyone else.


ASH
What’s wrong with that?


ANNIE
That’s how I ended up like this. Everyone trying to control me and everyone else. Forcing people doesn’t work. Maybe it works for you but it doesn’t work for the rest of us.


ASH
What if I know what’s right? What if I know what’s good for you?


ANNIE
You sure you’re making the right choices? Were you supposed to buy a comic with those $5?


ASH
Um… well… no.


ANNIE
So are you making the best choices?


ASH
I will.


ANNIE
When?


ASH
I don’t know.


ANNIE
What were you going to buy with that money?


ASH
A notebook. I was going to write.


ANNIE
What about?


ASH
About how to make the world a better place.


ANNIE
And you bought a horror comic instead.


ASH
When that guy died in the store, I didn’t really feel like writing it anymore. It made things feel kind of hopeless.


ANNIE
It’s too bad he didn’t do the opposite. Too bad he didn’t inspire you.


ASH
How could a dead guy inspire me?


ANNIE
Maybe you would want to find out more about him. Maybe there’s bad choices he made in his life. Maybe you could learn from his mistakes and share those lessons with others.


ASH
You’re smarter than you look.


ANNIE
Thanks… I think.


ASH
I mean… you don’t look…


ANNIE
You can stop there… you’ll just dig yourself deeper.


ASH
So what should I do?


(JONES gets excited and appears)


JONES
This is it!


BAKER
Shhh!


(BAKER quiets him and they hide again. ANNIE notices but ASH doesn’t. ANNIE decides to ignore them but wants to get ASH away from them)


ANNIE
I think you need to go.


ASH
Go?


ANNIE
Go now… read your comic… forget about the dead guy… forget about me… and live your life.


ASH
Um… okay.


ANNIE
Good-bye, Ash.


(ANNIE leaves. ASH watches her go sadly and leaves the other way. BAKER and JONES emerge)


JONES
What happened?


BAKER
I don’t know.


(ANNIE returns)


ANNIE
Who are you?


(BAKER and JONES turn defensively)


JONES
Why did you send him off like that? You were getting through to him.


ANNIE
I said, who are you?


BAKER
We’re travelers. Trying to help.


ANNIE
Travelers? You mean time travelers?


JONES
She knows.


ANNIE
I know a lot of things. I know that you two have been meddling. I know that you have been torturing that boy through his entire life until his death. I was here to help, to sooth the pain and try to pick up the pieces, but you keep disrupting that. You are causing him so much pain. He’s a good kid that you have pushed over the edge to insanity.


BAKER
What are you talking about? Who are you?


ANNIE
I’m a life jumper.


JONES
I’ve heard of you. That was something new that was being developed in my time. They can jump into the lives of people who lived within their own lifetime.


BAKER
That sounds complicated and kind of boring. I mean the first thing I wanted to see as a time traveler was the dinosaurs.


ANNIE
But each time you appear in another time, you damage the time line. You create cracks. Cracks in the lives of others.


JONES
How is life jumping any better?


ANNIE
We partner with someone living in the time and work with them. And by jumping in our own lifetime we avoid disrupting an unknown future or past.


BAKER
Sounds very complicated.


ANNIE
It requires a lot of brain power I’m afraid. You better stick to your dinosaurs.


(JONES chuckles and BAKER gives him a killer look)


JONES
So where does this leave us? What should we do now?


ANNIE
Nothing. Do nothing.


BAKER
But future are we going back to?


ANNIE
Who said you’re going back?


JONES
What?


BAKER
Wait a minute. What are you saying?


ANNIE
I’m saying you’re done. Finished… nevermore. I am going to erase you.


JONES
Erase us?


ANNIE
I need to remove you from every moment in time where you don’t belong.


BAKER
Remove us?


ANNIE
And attempt to repair the damage that has been done. The theory is that if we can stop you…


BAKER
Theory? You’re testing a theory? You’ve never done this before?


ANNIE
You’re our test subjects.


JONES
So what is erasing?


BAKER
I don’t intend to find out.


JONES
What are you doing?


(BAKER grabs JONES and BLACKOUT)

SCENE 19


JONES
Where are we?


BAKER
Back in my time… I think.


JONES
Where is everyone?


BAKER
Something’s not right.


JONES
I feel so cold. Why is it so cold here?


BAKER
My device is dead. I’m not getting any readings.


JONES
She did it…


BAKER
No, we got away.


JONES
She erased us.


BAKER
No, that’s impossible.


JONES
People once believed time travel was impossible.


BAKER
She seems to have trapped us somewhere outside of time.


JONES
Erased us.


BAKER
Stopped saying that!


JONES
Maybe we deserve this. Maybe we brought this on ourselves. We thought we were helping and changing the world for the better but instead we were forcing our values on everyone else. Does that make us any better than the people we were fighting against?


BAKER
We were fighting for what’s right.


JONES
But was our right way, the only right way? Who are we to decide right and wrong?


BAKER
Life is all about deciding what is right and wrong and trying to make a difference. You can’t sit back and let life happen to you. And you can’t sit back and let injustice happen in this world. I will never stop fighting. I will never let evil win. I will find a way. I will find a way to escape here and put things right.


JONES
You’re a good person, Baker. It has been an honor serving with you.


BAKER
And you as well, Jones. I pray people like us will continue to take a stand and control the future.


JONES
Let’s get to work and figure a way out of here.


BAKER
Agreed.

END OF PLAY

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OF ALL SCENES
AND CAST OF CHARACTERS

ISBN-13: 978-1540666581
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