### Act 1, Scene 2: The Big Bang

- Setting: At night, at the Peter M. Harrington Airfield. The background shows the lower part of the control car of Airship HW-129. Ropes that are holding the Airship down lead from the top of the backdrops to somewhere below the second level. The background is unlit at the start of the scene, and can be lit from below (as if there were huge lighting fixtures on the ground, not bright daylight). On the second level on the left is a statue of Peter M. Harrington. In the middle, there is a stage with the H&W logo and a projection screen in the middle. On the right is a desk/booth with an old time radio microphone on it.
- Stage setup:
- /!\ the same setting, but at day, is used for 3-4 /!\
- Backdrop: the airfield at night with the airship and the exhibition
  - ropes for the airship + ripped part
- Big scene elements (2nd rail):
  - Peter M. Harrington statue [6-7]
  - middle:
    - stage + projection screen
    - Ortha's cage (Mesuri)
  - radio booth [1]
- On playrail: Nothing.
- Props:
  - vintage microphone (Curry)
  - pokey stick for Cal (Tigerseye)
  - working flashlights, big (everyone 5x)
- Special effects:
  - projection screen collapsing orderly (Haku, Black Wulf)
  - airship illumination (Zefiro, then redshirts)
  - three bomb explosions + Debris (Haku, Black Wulf)
  - statue falling over (Haku, Black Wulf)
  - radio booth gets shattered/collapses (Haku, Black Wulf)
  - stage fire (Zefiro)
  - Somebody to man the projection apparatus with projections (Mesuri)
- PreRec: Announcer (Cheetah), Eyewitness (Liam)
- Puppets: Cal (Eisfuchs, Tigerseye), Florence (Pan, Liam), Ortha (Tani, o'wolf, Estragon, Lee Taiger), Abraham (Runo, Luno), Radio reporter (Curry, "Bird"), Redshirt 1 (Lynard, "Louis" (LED eyes, dark hair)), Redshirt 2 (Jyanon, "Bobcat"), Redshirt 3 (Shishi, "Whisperwind"), Redshirt 4 (Kayjay, "Sparky"), Redshirt 5 (Hai, "Savannah")

##### TECH PREROLL

LX 0099 - Work Light OFF (Static Playbacks)

LX 1201 - STANDBY for GO: DBO with dim blue reading light (link to LX 0002)

Check Levels
Unmute Desk

Pan: ON
Runo: ON

Curry: OFF
Eisfuchs: OFF
Tani: OFF
Telepathic FX: OFF

##### DIALOG

Curtain - open

AMB 0201 - Exhibition

LX 1210 - Night Ambience

Florence enters from [7] followed closely by …

Abraham from [7]

Visitors are strolling around, pausing to look at the statue and the airship.

MUS-0201 - Cue 1

Abraham: "Oh wow, just look at her. She is so much bigger than I thought."

Florence: "Really? I'd say she's exactly as big as I hoped she would be. I just wish we could see more of her."

Abraham: "Just wait. They set up the biggest electric light installation in the world, it's going to look gorgeous."

Florence: "That is so typical for Welsh. He'll never pass up a chance to show off just how rich he is."

Abraham (ironic): "Do I hear a touch envy?"

Florence: "The company Harrington & Welsh was founded at my mom's kitchen table by my father, the engineer, and Welsh, the salesman. He could sell you a cup of horse piss and make you believe it's a '65 Chateau de Ferèt."

MUS-0202 - Cue 2

Abraham: "Florence! Watch your language!"

Florence: "I have absolutely no sympathy for this … person."

Abraham: "Why?"

Florence: "Because my name is Harrington, and I deliver cake?"

Abraham: "Oh. Yeah. Point taken."

Radio Reporter emerges in front of his microphone

LX 1211 - Radio Booth Spot ON

Florence: "If you want my advice - don't believe a word he says. This is not an exhibition, it's a sales pitch."

MUS-0203 - Cue 3

Abraham: "But the airship … it is marvelous!"

Florence (looks up and sighs): "Oh my god, yes she is … (whispers) And guess who didn't design her!"

Curry: ON

Jingle

SND 0201 - Loudspeaker: "Ladies and Gentleman, welcome to "The Trans Oceanic Expedition Magical Moving Picture Show". Please take a seat, the show is about to begin!"
MUS-0204 - Cue 4

Reporter: "This is Feivel Mc Brookhaven for Astar National Radio, reporting live from Port Ospen, proud capital of the kingdom of great Astar. The royal geographic society has confirmed that Mr. Welsh's expedition has indeed found a mysterious uninhabited continent far in the South Astarian Sea. The Peter M. Harrington Airfield is bursting with people curious to see the incredible spectacle that is about to begin, celebrating the return of Mr. Welsh and his crew."

MUS-0204 FADE

Curry: OFF

LX 1212 - Radio Booth Spot OFF

VID-0201 START VIDEO

SND-0202 - Wait for lead in "2".

SND 0202 - Fanfare, then Newsreel-eseque orchestral music that sounds like it's being played from a gramophone

AMB 0203 - Exhibition Silent

AMB 0201 - FADE

SND 0202 (cont.) - Narrator: "Harrington & Welsh, conqueror of the skies of Astar and suppressor of the uprising of Vanos proudly presents: The Trans Oceanic Expedition!"

The projection shows a picture of a map showing Astar in the middle of the sea

SND 0202 (cont.) - Narrator: "We have long shared the dream of expanding our realm beyond the horizon! But so far explorers have found nothing but a few barren islands within the ice of the northern sea."

The projection shows a picture of the airship

SND 0202 (cont.) - Narrator: "Thanks to the HW-129 long range airship, we were able to venture farther than any explorer before them. It provides twice the space for provisions, requires less than half the crew of a traditional ship, and even carries two HW-21 war planes in case defense becomes necessary."

The projection shows a picture of a beach with palm trees

SND 0202 (cont.) - Narrator: "The unnamed continent is a rich tropical paradise, full of exotic plants and animals never seen before, and millions of acres of fertile ground rich in valuable minerals waiting to be mined and traded. But exploring a new world is a dangerous affair. You never know what awaits you. Dangerous weather! Poisonous plants! Or even fierce, savage beasts!"

The projection shows Ortha behaving like Godzilla

SND 0202 (cont.) - Music goes dramatic!

Everybody gasps

SND 0202 (cont.) - Eyewitness: "We were peacefully flying along the shore, mapping out the coastline, when we were suddenly attacked by these huge flying animals. They looked like feathered dragons, trying to sink their claws into our hull! We were in fear for our lives! They were the most horrible things we had ever seen, and they seemed to have only one thing in mind: KILL! KILL KILL!"

Tani: ON

Eisfuchs: ON

Push the cage with Ortha forward. The projection screen collapses, only the stage remains.

LX 1213 - Ortha Spot On; Radio Booth Spot On

Cal stands next to the cage with a long stick, poking Ortha with it, to make her react even wilder.

Ortha thrashes around in fear, hissing and snarling at the audience.

The audience panics for a moment, until they realize the animal is caged.

Audience screams!

Curry: ON

SND 0202 (cont.) - AUDIENCE SCREAMS!

AMB 0203 - Exhibition Excited

AMB 0202 - FADE

Reporter: "The audience reels in terror, as one of the beasts is revealed to them in the flesh, showing its sleek red body and the sharp fangs of a bloodthirsty predator! What a horrifying sight! I'm barely standing 20 meters away, and my legs are shaking. SHAKING!"

SND 0203 - Narrator: "Fear not, people of Astar! This beast can not hurt you. It was subdued and brought to the kingdom as a gift of gratitude to her Majesty, Queen Irdis of great Astar! Together we will conquer the world, with Airships by Harrington and Welsh!"

SND 0202 (FADE)

Curry: OFF

(The presentation ends here!)

SND 0203 (cont.) - Big light switch

LX 1220 - Light up Airship

SND 0203 (cont.) Audience applauds and oohs and aahs, and everyone jumps up and runs around to get a closer look at the airship.

Some people run up to the cage

Cal waves at them with his stick

Florence gets up, and turns around towards Abraham

MUS-0205 - Cue 5

Florence (angry): "Oh - my - god! What a terrible show!"

Abraham: "Really? I found it quite entertaining."

Florence (more angry): "It was dreadful! Horrendous! Abysmal! No mention of any of the inventions that made the ship possible in the first place! The complex multi-plane fins, the two-row radial engines with their centrifugal superchargers, using a gas as fuel … I could go on like this forever!"

Abraham: "You seem to know a lot about the airship!"

Florence: "Of course I do! My father designed it! The only thing Welsh ever contributed to it was his name. And who in their right mind puts warplanes on a research vessel?"

Abraham: "Maybe it's good for more than one purpose."

MUS-0206 - Cue 6

Florence: "Damn right. I told you it's a sales pitch. The war against Vanos made him the richest man in the world, but that's over now. It's no coincidence he's showing us the most scary beast he could find. He needs a new threat to keep his war machines in demand. Father would have never allowed this. He wanted to make the world a better place."

Abraham: "But would he have won the war?"

Florence: "In war there are no winners."

MUS-0207 - Cue 7

Cal: "Stay away from the cage, or you're gonna lose an arm! Yes, I mean you!"

Florence: "HEY! How would you feel locked up in a cage like that, thousands of miles from home?"

Cal keeps poking Ortha with his stick

Cal: "Oh shut up, woman!"

Florence: "Stop pestering the poor animal! Can't you see it's scared?"

Cal: "I'm just showing her who's the man in the house!"

Abraham: "Is that also how you treat your wife at home?"

Cal: "Oh, hello, if that isn't our esteemed Mr. French! How much cake did you have to order for that date?"

Abraham: "One more word, and I'm going to get up there and …"

FIRST BOMB EXPLODES! Puppets fly in various directions. The statue of Peter Harrington falls over.

SND 0204 - KABOOM!

SND 0203 (FADE)

Florence screams and hides behind Abraham

SND 0204 (cont.) - Screams, Panic

The remaining audience scatters

Curry: ON

Abraham: "WHAT THE HELL!"

Reporter: "We interrupt our program for these breaking news. A bomb has exploded at the Peter M. Harrington airfield just a few seconds ago. Everybody is running around, trying to find a safe place. The airship does not seem to be damaged, but nobody knows how many are wounded or even dead. Is this a terrorist attack? Is this the revenge of separatists from Vanos? We will … AAAARGH!"

SECOND BOMB EXPLODES directly next to the reporter, who dies instantly, and his booth gets shattered by the blast.

0205 - KABOOM!

0204 (FADE)

MUS-0208 - Cue 8

Feedback, then static

Florence screams and hides behind Abraham

SND 0205 (cont.) - Feedback, then static

Curry: OFF

LX 1221 thru 1230 - The light flickers and goes out.

H&W staff run onto the scene with flashlights, creating a surreal scene of flickering light beams in the dark

SND 0205 (cont.) - Alarm Sirens from the airship

SND 0205 (cont.) - Loudspeaker: "We are under attack. Prepare for immediate takeoff. All crew on board. I repeat, we are under attack. Prepare for immediate takeoff."

Cal: "Shine some torches over here, I need some goddamn light!"

Two staffers with bright flashlights stand behind the playrail, and light the cage with Ortha in it from below

One staffer shines his light at Cal.

Ortha bares her teeth, and bites into the cage whenever someone gets close

Cal picks up a rope that is fixed to the cage, and pulls, but he's not strong enough.

Cal: "Hrrrrrgn! Damn! It's stuck! Come here you sissies and help me!"

THIRD BOMB EXPLODES, right between Cal and the cage. Cal gets swept off his feet by the blast and disappears.

0206 - KABOOM!

0205 (FADE)

MUS-0209 - Cue 9

MUS-0208 FADE

The presentation stage catches fire (not real fire).

Florence: "Oh no! The poor animal! It might get hurt!"

Abraham: "No, Florence, stay with me! FLORENCE!"

Abraham tries to keep Florence from running off, but to no avail.

Florence runs up the second level towards the cage

Florence: "Calm down! Everything will be alright!"

Cal reappears, slightly charred, a bit shaky, threatening Florence with his stick

Cal: "Keep away from the cage, you idiot! She will rip your arm right off!"

Florence: "Let me help you pull the rope!"

Cal holds up a ripped up piece of rope

Cal: "This one? If you want to help, get the fuck out of the way!"

Cal tries to grab the cage by one of the bars, but Ortha snaps at him as soon as he gets close.

The stage catches more fire.

Cal: "ACK! Dammit! Stop biting me!"

Cal tries to push Ortha away to the other side of the cage with his stick

Cal: "Why won't you do what I tell you! It's for your own good!"

Ortha grabs the stick with her teeth, and rips it out of Cal's hands.

Cal: "Goddamn bitch!"

Florence: "What the hell are you doing? You're just frightening her even more!"

Florence walks up close to the cage, reaching inside with her arm

Cal: "What the hell are you doing? Are you crazy?!"

MUS-0210 - Cue 10

Florence: "Hey there. Everything will be okay! Just calm down! I'm not going to hurt you. Just trust me."

Ortha lurches forward, and bites Florence arm.

Florence screams

Abraham: "NO!!!!"

Time stops (and everyone must turn down their flashlight in order to stop illuminating Ortha instantly)

Telepathic FX: ON

LX 1240 - Ortha Telepathic

SND 0207 - Time Stops

SND 0206 (FADE)

AMB 0203 (Volume to 0%)

Ortha (telepathic): "Wait what? You're not deaf, like the other ones? How is that possible? And you have a name? Florence? Help me, Florence! Help me!"

SND 0208 - Time Starts (+Resume Airfield Noises)

LX 1250 - Night Ambience

AMB 0203 (Volume to 100%)

Telepathic FX: OFF

Time continues

The stage is now fully on fire. (Still no real fire.)

SND 0209 - Sound of generator starting up

LX 1251 - The light comes back on

The staffers put away their flashlights, and begin to remove the ropes that hold the airship down one by one.

Ortha lets go of her arm

Florence staggers backwards, breathing heavily

Cal: "I told you she's gonna bite you, but noooo, stupid wouldn't listen."

Florence (out of breath): "She …. she's not an animal!"

MUS-0211 - Cue 11

Cal: "What? What are you talking about?"

Florence: "I said She! Is! Not! An! Animal!"

Ortha lies down quietly, looking at Cal, then looking at Florence.

Cal: "How … how the hell did you calm her down like that?"

Florence: "You wouldn't understand! Let's get her into the airship! Or do you want her to burn alive?"

Cal: "No. Of course not."

Florence pushes the cage from her side.

Cal pulls the cage from his side

The cage moves slowly towards [1]

MUS-0212 - Cue 12

SND 0210 - Squeaky Wheels

SND 0210 (cont) - Loudspeaker: "Batten down the hatches, close the cargo doors, all hands aboard!"

SND 0210 (cont) - Closing Hangar Doors

Florence: "Don't close the doors! Wait for us!"

Abraham: "Florence, come back! What am I supposed to tell your mother?"

Florence: "You're a smart man! Just make something up!"

Abraham: "Are you kidding me? Florence? Florence! Goddammit!"

Florence and Cal push the cage off stage

LX 1299 - Lights out

Fade Ambience, SFX and Music with LX 1299

Curtain - close

Mute all but Video

LX 0099 - Work Light ON (Static Playbacks)