Natalie: *Talking into a voice recorder dramatically, as if documenting a show* “I’ve never
been the type of person to go out of my way to make someone feel like they belong. I don’t do
anything special. I’m a damn writer for the school newspaper, all I do is listen to people all day
telling me what to do, how to write, how to speak. I don’t get appreciation–-”
Mya: “Really? That's what you're starting with?”
*Natalie sets down the recorder*
Natalie: “What? It's not good”
Mya: “Your life isn't that bad. People like you but I, unlike you, am an outcast”
Natalie: “Stop making this about you, I was talking”
Mya: “Ugh!”
Narrator: They were on the corner or of 86th and Broadway in Brooklyn New York, and sitting
on a bench with a plaque that wrote In memory of Sebastian Ross and talking into a voice
recorder.
Mya: “Let's just start over, But get to the point, we don't have much time”
Natalie: “Fine”
*She starts talking quietly and begins telling her story. Before she even finished her first
sentence, a man walks up to them *his face is covered* and starts berating them with questions;
accusing them of knowing information. *
Man: “Where is it? What have you done?”
Harsher and harsher his words become, and that harshness turns into aggression. He grabs
Mya's arm and Screams
Man: “WHAT HAVE YOU DONE WITH THEM!!???”
*With little hesitation, Natalie grabs Mya's other hand and kicks the man. They start running*
Narrator: They run. With no destination, they ran. With nowhere to go, they ran, frantically and
scared. They stopped running, out of breath and tired.
*The lights turn off” They arrive at Columbia University. They walk until they find the university
library where they walked in and sat at the nearest table. Natalie reached in her pocket for the
voice recorder and to her surprise, it is gone.
Natalie: “It’s gone”
As there was nothing critically important on the device, they didn't go back for it. Instead, Mya
brought Natalie a few pieces of paper and a pen, and Natalie, without hesitation, starts writing
*The lights go dark*
The light is focused on Natalie writing on a piece of paper (center stage)
Female Narrator: You don't know me, but my name is Natalie Ross and you are in danger.
Now, before you stop reading, please listen. Around 2 days ago I received a letter that said
“choose your acquaintances wisely, you never know who is lurking in the shadows”. I thought
nothing of it at first and threw it in the mail pile. *The lights turn off again and the set changes to
a house: narrator continues talking a little slower* But soon, my sister came to me. My sister,
who disappeared 3 years ago without a trace. When I had opened the door I couldn't say
anything, I just let her come in and sit down. It had been years and yet all she wanted to do was
sleep. My mom and dad were out of town and she claimed she had nowhere else to go. *her
voice starts getting quieter* I let her in and she plopped on the couch and fell asleep. When she
awoke I was sitting there, anxious for her to talk. *lights turn on*
Mya: waking up and stretching “What do you want?”
Natalie: “It’s been 32 months and you ask me what I want? I want you Mya, where the hell have
you been?”
Mya: “Around.”
Natalie: “Around?”
Mya: “Yep”
Natalie: “Please talk to me Mya”
Mya: “soon, did you get my note?”
The door bursts open (stage left) and a man with a trench coat appears. he’s tall and has an
old-fashioned mustache. He wears maroon and black clothes. He has a gold pocket watch in his
hand. He holds it up slowly to his face and observes it. The girls are on the couch, frightened.
The Clockmaker: “Where are my gears mya?”
Mya: “You can't have them”
The clockmaker charges after her, she dodges his attempts swiftly and runs out the door (stage
left).
Natalie: Mya!!
Mya: Nat!
*they stare at each other for a split second*
Natalie: “It's OKAY, GO!!”
Mya runs off stage. Natalie is still sitting there with no idea how to escape. The clockmaker turns
and stares at her for a moment and then whistles. A short chubby boy walks through the door, he
is no older than 20. He walks up to Natalie, who is still paralyzed with fear, slowly he places
handcuffs around her wrist. He grabs the chain of the handcuffs and leads her out the door. *The
lights are now focused on the clockmaker* He tears through the drawers, searching for the
gears. And finds nothing.
*lights turn off* over the darkness you hear Natalie’s voice.
Natalie: “Where are you taking me? Where is my sister? MYA??? MYA!!!!!”
*Lights turn back on and it is focused back on Natalie* Natalie puts the pen down and leaves
stage right and Mya enters stage left, picks up the pen, and starts writing
Female Narrator #2: “Hi, Mya here. You have heard my sister's side but now it's my turn… I
wasn't always running. 3 years ago After my grandfather died, my family and I had the
responsibility of clearing out his office. I had always admired my grandfather’s knack for putting
important objects in secret places. When I was younger, he would tell Natalie and me that “the
thing that you value the most may not be significant to others, but remember the reason why it's
important to you in your heart.” The night he died, my family was around his bed, silent, waiting
for the moment to come. We had taken turns and it was my time to say goodbye. I looked at him
with tears in my eyes and he squeezed my hand and handed me a note, secretly as to where the
family wouldn’t see. I put it in my pocket and let go of his hand. Tears filled my eyes and I didn't
speak for a long time. When we got home I reached into my pocket and unfolded the note *lights
off*
Old Man’s Voice: “Before Every New Exciting Adventure, Take with you: Hope and
Enthusiasm and Show the world the power of Knowledge”
*lights focus back on Mya writing*
Female Narrator #2: “When I read the note, I wasn't quite sure what to think about it, grandpa
wasn't the sentimental type nor was he poetic so I thought this was strange. *lights turn off and
set changed to an office area*
I read the note over and over and then I realized something, the words were capitalized weird, it
was almost every word but not quite. The words That were capitalized were “Before Every New
Exciting Adventure Take Hope Enthusiasm Show Knowledge” My skills in watching crime
shows came in handy. I took the first letter of every word and write it down “BENEATH DESK”
it wrote. I knew grandpa was trying to tell me something. As soon as we arrived at his house to
clean out his home I went straight to work. I looked under every other desk in the house beside
the one in the office. I walked the halls of his house slowly knowing that it wouldn't be long
before my grandmother sold it. I hurt at the thought of that ever happening. *lights turn on and
we see a desk center stage and Mya in a doorway (Stage right) *
Female Narrator #2: “When I got to his office, I saw his desk loaded with pictures of us as kids,
and then, I start snooping.
Mya: “Okay I know it's around here somewhere, I know it” She looks at the desk and smiles
“BENEATH DESK, it can't be that easy” She goes to the desk and looks everywhere, twice. You
can hear the frustration in her voice * “Where is it, WHAT DO YOU WANT ME TO FIND,
WHERE IS IT??!!!” *she collapses, crying in frustration and exhaustion. Her anger consumes
her and she yells. She hits the floor hard and there's a loud THUNK, she hits it again. It sounds
hollow. She grabs a pen out of one of the desk drawers and sticks it on the floorboard. It pops up
and she pulls out a small old burlap sack bag. “YES!!! Yes-yes-yes-yes-yes-yes”
*lights turn off, music plays* set doesn't change but mya exits the stage right and an old man
walks in and sits at the desk. *lights turn on* he starts writing
Old Man: “Mya, I knew you would find this, I don't have time to explain, but he is after me. I
have wronged many people in my life and now I’m paying for it. In the bag, you will find gears.
Clock gears. I can't explain it all right now but you will find out soon enough. I love you so
much honey, don't let the clockmaker have those gears. He will use it against you he WILL turn
back time and try to change the past. DONT trust anyone. I didn't want to put this burden upon
you but you are the only one who I know will keep the gears safe. I love you sweet pea, I’ll
always be with you.
*lights turn off and the desk moves. *
Mya is now alone with the light shining on her center stage. She folds the note back up
Mya: “Damn I knew he was crazy. But this, this takes the cake” She throws the envelope and
bag of gears into her backpack and walks home. The light shines on the stage left and there is a
couch. Mya plops on the couch and goes to sleep. * lights turn off*
Female Narrator #2: *through the darkness* “That night I couldn’t sleep, all I did was think
about the gears and how crazy my grandfather sounded. “He's never been wrong,” I thought. I
told myself to not worry about it and that it would all be okay. I drifted slowly to sleep. I woke
up to a tall man hovering over me. I shrieked and tried to get past him. He grabbed me and I
fought with all my might. He said *clockmaker's voice* “Ah, I see why your poor dying
grandfather chose you to take care of my gears. If I’d known he would give them to a helpless
little girl, I would’ve poisoned him sooner. Poor, old, Sebastian ross. May he rest in peace”
*back to female narrator* I was furious I kicked and punched and miraculously got away. “I
can't go back home, it's not safe, I have to run” and I did. I ran. I got far away from New York,
away from my family so they would be safe. But he got too close, I had to use Natalie’s help, so I
came back to new”
*lights turn back on and we see Natalie blindfolded, gagged with a wild rag, and with her hand's
handcuffed around a pole. The short man is there sitting crisscross. He seems bored. The
clockmaker walks out from the darkness (stage left)
The Clockmaker: “Now that I have her sister, Mya will come back and give me what I want. I
need my gears, Thomas.
*the short man looks up at him*
Thomas: “You've never called me by my name before sir”
The Clockmaker: “Oh, don't get used to it”
*we see Natalie struggling and then we see Mya slowly creep into view (stage right). Mya takes
the burlap sack out of her backpack and yells*
Mya: “You looking for this old man? *she holds up the sack* Let my sister go and you’ll get it.”
*the clockmaker hesitantly walks up to her and holds his hand out, Mya hands him the bag and
goes back to Natalie. The clockmaker opens the bag and his expression changes. He is now filled
with rage. He pours the contents of the bag out. It rocks.*
The Clockmaker; “Thomas, get them”
*Thomas charges after then. He trips and a key falls out of his pocket. Mya picks it up and
quickly unlocks the handcuffs on Natalie... Natalie takes the gag and blindfolds off and she and
Mya run.* Lights turn off*
The Clockmaker: *over the darkness* “ILL GET YOU MYA!!”
*lights turn on. music plays and the set changes to the original set from the beginning. With the
bench. Natalie holding a voice recorder.
Mya: “Really? That's what you're starting with?”
*Natalie sets down the recorder*
Natalie: “What? It's not good”
Mya: “Your life isn't that bad. People like you but I, unlike you, am an outcast”
Natalie: “Stop making this about you, I was talking”
Mya: “Let's just start over, But get to the point, we don't have much time”
Natalie: “Fine”
*She starts talking quietly and begins telling her story. Before she even finished her first
sentence, a man walks up to them *his face is covered* and starts berating them with questions;
accusing them of knowing information. *
Man: “Where is it? What have you done?”
Harsher and harsher his words become, and that harshness turns into aggression. He grabs
Mya's arm and Screams
Man: “WHAT HAVE YOU DONE WITH THEM!!???”
*With little hesitation, Natalie grabs Mya's other hand and kicks the man. They run* lights turn
off and now they are seen on the street
Mya: “We have to get rid of the gears”
Natalie: “How?”
Mya: “He's found us, we cant put ourselves in danger anymore”
Natalie: “You're right, I know what we can do with them. Let us go to the library, I have an idea”
*Lights turn off. They are back in the library, with the desk. Mya is writing again*
Female Narrator #2: “and now you know why we had to write you, you are the only one we
can trust to protect the gears. Better than me or Natalie. Sarah, I’ve seen the work you do. I know
bout your past. Please don’t trust anyone but yourself. You are the only person qualified to do
this. I know you don’t know us and we wouldn’t ask unless the world is in danger, which it is.
Please don't let us down. We are counting on you”
*Mya folds up the paper and pulls out a small drawstring backpack. She puts the papers in there
and turns to Natalie
Mya: “Come on, we don’t have time to spare, he is still after us”
*lights turn off. The stage is cleared and there is a loud knock*
*KNOCK KNOCK*
Mail Man: “Delivery!!.
*There is a light center stage and a girl walks out. She is wearing clothing as if she had just
come back from the gym. There is a black drawstring backpack on the floor. She picks it up*
Sarah: “From Mya and Natalie”
*Sarah opens the back and takes out the paper and starts reading, the lights turn off. The lights
turn back on and she is sitting on the ground. With he hand over her mouth in shock*
Sarah: “Nahhh, this has to be fake. Very nice prank to whoever did this”
*a light flashes quickly upstage left and we see a tall figure with its head down. Sarah flinches.
The light shines again on the figure and it lets out a sinister laugh”
The Clockmaker: “Ha. Ha. Ha. Your turn”
*the lights turn off quickly and dark music plays*
THE END……..FOR NOW