Inspiration from this poem written by bribold1

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<Sgt. Henry stares off towards SL where the Judiciary (the antagonist government) is and where their attack will come from tomorrow morning at dawn. It is midday and off on SR it is to be believed that the rest of the battalion are making preparations and training for the battle, while Henry is preparing internally. As he stares off Pvt.Shivetz walks up behind him as he lights up a cig. Henry notices Shivetz and returns to staring.>

Henry: It's been a long while since i've seen the skies, son. I remember when i was just a kid and i would spend my Saturday mornings just laying in the grass and would watch the clouds roll by all day. But then those mechs came in, and even since those damn factories were built these skies have been gray. Just damn gray. But it wasn't just them skies they took from us. It was our freedom too. Our land. Our pride. They think that because of their technology they have the advantage. That those damn bots are gonna smoke our asses. But let me tell you, son, we got one thing that those bot ain't ever gonna have. Nothing they can program into their little computer minds. We got courage. Ain't no man here that is just gonna run from this battle. Why? Because we got fucking courage! We know in our hearts that no matter what they throw at us, what they blast at us, what they try to scare us with, we are gonna look them right in the eye and tell them to suck it. And that ain't something you can manufacture in a factory. With every bolt that weld in that damn inner city they are one step closer from taking out the very life of this land. And, fuck son, i wouldn't want to live in a land like that. Would you? [sighs] Look, soldier, just remember that tomorrow those damn bots are going to experience what it's like to feel fear because we are going to raise hell against them. We have our courage to back us up. Now, go get ready, soldier. We got a big day tomorrow.

<Shivetz exits R, and Henry stamps out his cig and takes one last look out.>

Henry: I'm sorry men, i truly am. I just hope you don't have any regrets left. God help us all.

<Henry exits R>

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Sorry if it's kind of crappy. It's 1 AM here and my brain is only working at half capacity. I'll reread it tomorrow and see what i need to revise.

I have the idea of what i am going to write for the play for Thespian Competitions bouncing around through my head. After playing Soldier-based FPS games these past couple of days and finally watching V for Vendetta after a while i think i have finally decided on a story line.

When it comes to conflicts in movies or games that deal with governments vs. rebellions you see either two things happen. The government wins against the rebellions who have been painted as extremists, or the rebellion wins against a dictatorship and brings freedom back to the land.

But what you don't see often is the side where the rebellion loses against a dictatorship.

One technique to writing that i have been fond of and try to use when i can is having one quote or phrase that leads you throughout your story and provides your inspiration. One of my absolute favorite quotes is "A hero need not speak, for when he is gone the world will speak for him." And for so long i have been trying to find a way to fit that into a story line, and now i think i finally have it.

So that quote is the leading idea that powers behind my play. You have a rebellion that loses but hopefully by the end the audience is so tied to them and their goal that when they lose they still walk away with the feeling of satisfaction that even though those fighters are gone, they still have done their job.

It's going to kind of hard to do that, especially because i have to balance the story and the audience's feelings all while trying to make it so the audience is glad that people have died for a cause and that their death meant something in the end. But i'm going to try.

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The other part of this has to do with a story that i tried to write like a year ago (i reread it and it sucked so i might go and rewrite it) that centers around this advanced city. On the outer slums are people living impoverished, filthy, and struggling. All the while they live in hatred of the inner core of the city: A mechanized utopia that glows a soft blue against the grime of the slums. The people in the outer area aren't allowed to go into the inner core for fear of "contaminating" it, but that still doesn't stop them from forming a small underground group that talks about destroying the inner core. However all they mainly did during their secret meetings was talking since they was no way they could break through the metal wall barrier that separated the two sections.

All the while neither sector had anything to do with the other. The mechanized core had nothing to do with the slums and the slums didn't want to be bothers by anyone from the inner area.

However, all of that changed when an area in the slums was attacked by bots from the inner city. The resistance was able to fend off the attack, but it was the spark that started a war. A war that would uncover the history about why the two area were separated, and secrets that were never meant to be revealed.

So after thinking about it for a little while i thought, why not put both ideas together? There was room for me to have a government vs. resistance story and a man vs. machine story. I mean, the mech story basically had a government vs. rebellion story weaved into it. All i have to do now is just clean up the edges a bit.

Which is where this play comes in, it's going to be the same story of the resistance falling, but just with elements of the mech war tied into it.

Now since i can only submit a One Act for competitions, i have to set up both sides, show the conflict between the two, and have the rebellion fall in a short amount of time. I just hope it works out.

I like it so far .


And the ideas.