Newton’s Second Law

NARRATOR:
Margaret rises to her feet
And points upriver
A ship approaches

SAMUEL:
Who’s that?

MARGARET:
I can’t tell

NARRATOR:
Looking down the coast
Anna squints her eyes
A ship approaches

ANNA:
There are a lot of people on that boat

NARRATOR:
Coming into focus
Slicing upriver
A ship approaches

SAMUEL:
I don’t like this

MARGARET:
Neither do I

NARRATOR:
Margaret yells to her friends
Anna, Rose, and John
A ship approaches
(Guns volley in the distance)

ROSE:
They’re shooting at us!

HERSCHEL:
We’re under attack!

NARRATOR:
Bullets rip through the jungle
Leaving devastation all around

CHORUS:
Bracing, bracing

NARRATOR:
People flеd Township Number Nine
Leaving it a ghost town

CHORUS:
Racing, racing

NARRATOR:
Running for covеr
Hiding back behind the sphere

NARRATOR, CHORUS:
They’ll destroy the satellite if they get here

ANNA:
We have to launch

HERSCHEL:
We have no chance

ROSE:
Then how do we defend her

HERSCHEL:
We have to leave

ANNA:
This can’t end now, not like this

CHARLES:
Surrender
(Beat. Bullets continue to fire and crash.)

NARRATOR:
Charles has a gun in his hand

CHARLES:
Anna, are you speechless? This is a first

NARRATOR:
This has gone exactly as he planned

CHARLES:
These mercenaries have orders to destroy the
Sphere and the flywheels as soon as they dock

HERSCHEL:
You bastard

CHARLES:
Here
I think I’ll level every inch of land
And have a harvest planted by the spring
Here
Rows and rows of sugarcane
Soon I will be living like a king
Here
A place that’s worthy of my work
Appropriately titled…
‘Charlestown’
Here
With no sign of the scientists
It’s a shame that their remains were never found

ANNA:
You’re doing this for sugarcane?

CHARLES:
Not just for sugarcane. I’m also doing this because
I don’t like you. Sir John, Miss Hanover - you will
Be mourned. What a tragic accident

ANNA:
We had a good run, Hershey

HERSCHEL:
It’s been a privilege, Nova. And Rose, I- (beat)
Where’d she go?

(clank)

NARRATOR:
Rose Stratford knocked Charles out
With her printing press plate

HERSCHEL:
You actually brought the plate with you?

ROSE:
Never underestimate the power of the press

NARRATOR:
The bricks halt every bullet
But the enemy has arrived
They’ve landed at the dock
And now there’s no place left to hide

HERSCHEL:
We cannot make the treeline

ANNA:
We’ve run out of time

MARGARET:
Anna!

SAMUEL:
Rose!

MARGARET:
Herschel!

MARGARET, SAMUEL:
Climb!!

NARRATOR:
A ladder to the top of the satellite
Two hundred feet high
The Sagitta was a fortress
They could take shelter inside

HERSCHEL:
But we’ll be trapped-

ROSE:
I’ll take my chances. Come on!

NARRATOR:
Rose takes Herschel’s hand

ROSE:
Aren’t you glad you asked me to come to South
America with you?

HERSCHEL:
Yes

ROSE:
Good. Then move your ass!

NARRATOR:
Rose leads the way
Up the side of the satellite

CHORUS:
Bracing, bracing

NARRATOR:
Bullets sprayed from below
Barely missing their marks

CHORUS:
Bracing, bracing

NARRATOR:
They reached the summit

NARRATOR, CHORUS:
Racing, racing
They jumped inside
Closed the hatch, then dark

(Bullets ricochet dully off of the Sagitta)

SAMUEL:
I just locked the hatch, we’re safe

ROSE:
I can’t see you, Samuel

ANNA:
Maybe we can wait them out, someone will
Get help-

HERSCHEL:
We’re hundreds of miles from the nearest
Township. I’m afraid we’re on our own

SAMUEL
Margaret? (beat) Margaret, are you alright?
I can’t see you!
(MARGARET begins to radiate)

NARRATOR:
Margaret started to glow
Margaret started to cry
Margaret closed her fists
Margaret closed her eyes

MARGARET:
Don’t be scared of the dark…

NARRATOR:
The sphere began to shake
The ramp began to quake
Then, a heavy thud

ANNA
The satellite is free!

NARRATOR:
The earth began to rumble
The sphere began to tumble
Rolling down the ramp

HERSCHEL:
Hold onto something!

NARRATOR:
The flywheels ran steady
The slingshot was ready
Now nothing could make them yield

ROSE, SAMUEL:
Each word we write sets a brick
And we built a satellite

NARRATOR, CHORUS:
Four, three, two, one
The satellite hit the wheels, then-

ALL:
Ahhh!
(The flywheels slingshot the Sagitta towards the
Heavens. The screams fade into the distance
Leaving nothing but air.)