October 4, 2026 · daily scene
The Reprieve
Given circumstances
- Character
- Maintenance Tech
- Setting
- Cargo bay, crates stacked to the ceiling, your tablet showing red across the board.
- The moment before
- You pulled the sixth failing coolant relay in two hours. They're all manufactured the same week.
- Scene partner
- The ship's captain, standing in the bay door with arms crossed
Direction
You know what you're about to say will delay the mission. Don't apologize for it — defend it.
Script
CAPTAINTell me you found the problem.
I did. It's the whole batch. Every relay installed in March is degraded. If we push to jump, we'll lose life support in the aft section.
CAPTAINHow long to replace them?
Forty-eight hours if I have help. Longer if I don't.
CAPTAINWe're scheduled to depart in six.
Then we depart with thirty percent of the ship on backup systems and hope nothing else fails. Or we delay, fix it right, and I sleep better.
Your call, Captain.
Written for Act It Up. Free to rehearse and perform for practice, classes and self-tapes.
Record this scene with a teleprompter and a scene partner who reads the other lines.
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