TIME TRIP!

Episode Nine
"A Sidewalk of the Mind"

By
Gabe Templin & Orlando Segarra

2016 justpressplayhouse@gmail.com
 TIME TRIP!
Prologue
NARRATOR
The year is 1944. Back in the familiar confines of her
Project Nunya laboratory, Doctor Meira Bitterman and
her lab assistant, Milo, finally break through to the
other side...
SOUND: LABORATORY STUFF

BITTERMAN
Prepare ze zhird flash.
MILO
Standing by.

BITTERMAN
In eins, zvei, drei, FLASH!
SOUND: BUTTON

SOUND: SPARK OF ENERGY

MILO
Nothing’s coming through.
SOUND: SPARK DIES DOWN

BITTERMAN
...come on, dear boy... don’t be gone. Don’t be gone.
Vhatever you do, do not be gone... Trip! Trip! Come in,
Trip!

SOUND: COMMUNICATOR CUTS IN

TRIP
...Doctor Bitterman... Doctor Bitterman... is that you?
MILO
Holy crap!
BITTERMAN
Mein GOD! Trip! My Boy! You’re alive! Zhank god you’re
alive!

MILO
Holy crap we did it!
TRIP
...feels good to hear your voice, Doc!
 2.

BITTERMAN
Same here! Where are you? Are you in trouble?
TRIP
...Always... really use some help.

MILO
I got him on my tracker.
BITTERMAN
Trip, listen, Milo has locked on to your position. Vind
ze vatch unt ve vill bring you home!
TRIP
...See you soon, Doc.
SOUND: WHIRLING OF ELECTRONIC EQUIPMENT

MILO
Micronetic Stabilizer holding steady...
BITTERMAN
Come on, my boy, hold on just a little longer...

SOUND: LOUDER WOOSH

SOUND: MINNIE SCREAMING ON THE OTHER SIDE
TRIP
Minnie!
KARACAS
You’re not getting away THAT easy!
TRIP
NO!!!!
BITTERMAN
Trip? Is everything alright?
SOUND: PHYSICAL STRUGGLE ON THE OTHER SIDE

SOUND: MAGNETIC DISTURBANCE

BITTERMAN (cont’d)
Vhat’s going on?? Who’s fighting who? Vhat’s
happening??

SOUND: THE STONE BREAKS IN TWO

SOUND: HALF THE STONE FALLS INTO THE SHALLOW POOL
 3.

TRIP
Let go of me!
BITTERMAN
Trip, is everything alright??

KARACAS
If this is the way you want to play, let’s do it your
way.
TRIP
I can feel... EVERYTHING!!!!
KARACAS
...see you on the other side!
SOUND: ZWIP!

SOUND: SILENCE EXCEPT FOR A STEADY STATUS BEEP

BITTERMAN
Vhat happened? Milo, talk to me!

MILO
I don’t know, it was pulling him through and then I
lost him!
BITTERMAN
What do you mean you lost him??

MILO
I lost him. I don’t know. I can’t find his signal.
BITTERMAN
...but... ve had him. He vas right zhere. You heard
him.
MILO
...I’m sorry.
SOUND: THE STEADY BEEP CONTINUES

BITTERMAN
So zhat’s it? Zhat vas our chance? Ve blew it?
MILO
Sorry.

BITTERMAN
It’s done. It’s over. Ze whole zhing is kaput.
 4.

MILO
Something must have interfered with the signal, I KNOW
I had him!
BITTERMAN
I can’t believe it. It’s over. I can’t believe...
SOUND: SOUND: THREE INCESSANT BEEPS IN A ROW
BITTERMAN (cont’d)
...I can’t believe he’s gone...

SOUND: THREE BEEPS AGAIN

MILO
What’s that beeping?

BITTERMAN
...gone for good.
SOUND: THREE BEEPS AGAIN
MILO
Wait a minute... Doctor B, I’m picking up something
faint...
BITTERMAN
Vhat is it? Is it Private Timeskipper?

MILO
I don’t know.
BITTERMAN
Is it Trip??

MILO
I don’t know! It’s too weak!
BITTERMAN
Lemme take a look.

SOUND: BUTTONS
MILO
Anything?
BITTERMAN
Zhis could be him... but if it is, it’s vorse zhan I
suspected.
MILO
What do you mean?
 5.

BITTERMAN
He’s not moving between planes... See? Here. It appears
he is stuck in an alternate dimension. It may be he is
trapped in a reality of his own construction. Zhere is
no way to reach him now unless ve can somehow manage to
break through ze illusion.
MILO
So it’s possible?
BITTERMAN
You must understand, ver’re talking about a realm of
physics ve are just now beginning to define. Anyzhing
ve undertake at zhis point would be based on mere
conjecture.
MILO
Since when have we been dealing with anything remotely
resembling reality?
BITTERMAN
Jah, but zhose vere all happy accidents. Zhis, zhis
vould take a great deal of analytical guessvork.

MILO
But you can do it, right?
BITTERMAN
...Zhis skill is beyond any contemporary scientist’s
grasp. Not even Einstein himself could do it.
MILO
I’m not asking you if Einstein can do it, I’m asking
you if YOU can do it.

SOUND: THREE BEEPS

BITTERMAN
...ready your button fingers, Milo. We’re going in.
MILO
Aye, aye, Doctor!
BITTERMAN
Hold on just a little vhile longer, Trip... Let’s get
our boy back!

SOUND: THEME MUSIC

NARRATOR
Trip may be gone but not for good. His matter flies in
a million pieces, skips through parallel dimensions on
the Quantum plane, and instantly reassembles on the
(MORE)
 6.

NARRATOR (cont’d)
other side of a wormhole. But where is he? And more
importantly, when is he? Just Press Playhouse proudly
Presents the continuing adventures of Private Trip
Timeskipper in... TIME TRIP!

SOUND: THEME MUSIC CONTINUES

NARRATOR (cont’d)
Previously, on Time Trip...

SOUND: CLIPS FROM THE PREVIOUS SHOW

NARRATOR (cont’d)
This week’s episode: A Sidewalk of the Mind.
Scene 1: The Void

SOUND: QUANTUM WAVES

SOUND: SWIRLING MEMORIES
SOUND: ECHOES

MOTHER
Trip- Trip- Trip- Trip...
TRIP
Mother?

MOTHER
I love you son- son- son- son...
TRIP
Mother? Mother?? Where are you??

SOUND: TIRES SQUEALING

TRIP (cont’d)
No!

FATHER
Your mother’s gone because of you- you- you...
TRIP
Dad.

MOTHER
Don’t let go- go- go...
TRIP
No.
 7.

MOTHER
Let go- go- go...

TRIP
Nooooooo! -oooo -oooo -ooo
SOUND: SINISTER LAUGH CUTTING THROUGH THE SWIRL
TRIP (cont’d)
Karacas?
SOUND: LAUGH CONTINUES
TRIP (cont’d)
Karacas, I’m talking to you!

KARACAS
Are we having fun yet, Trip?
TRIP
I don’t understand. Why are you doing this??

KARACAS
I already told you, I want to see how much you value
time...
TRIP
But why me? What does anything have to do with you? You
got your Sunstone. Why keep me prisoner?
KARACAS
Hahahaha... You don’t really think this is all about
you, do you? You’re just a Guinea Pig. My special lab
rat. You who have been so close to the only real
adversary I have ever encountered. If I can control
your mind, there are no limits to what my powers can
achieve.

TRIP
I’ll find a way out. I’ll make the jump!
KARACAS
How, may I ask, do you intend on accomplishing that
feat? Look at your wrist, young Timeskipper. Where is
your watch?
TRIP
It’s gone. You took it!
KARACAS
Me?? Hahaha. No, Trip, I do not need to take anything
from you. Your watch is still there. I have simply
removed its existence from your mind.
 8.

TRIP
But that’s not fair! You’re manipulating me!
KARACAS
Fair? Since when do I have any interest in being fair?
I want to keep things fun, and to that end, I have
constructed a special labyrinth for you... I’ll give
you a chance to find your watch...
TRIP
How?

KARACAS
Hahaha. If I told you, it wouldn’t be much of a
labyrinth, now, would it? Find the center and you shall
find your watch. Oh, here’s your stop. Have fun, Trip.
Ta-taa. Hahahahaha!

SOUND: LAUGHTER FADES INTO THE SWIRL

TRIP
Karacas!

SOUND: THUMP!
SOUND: SILENCE
Scene 2: The Knick Knack Shop

SOUND: RADIO FADES IN

RADIO ANNOUNCER
...and in lighter news, the Beneski museum in Amherst
College opened up a new wing of South American
artifacts today... Among the new exhibits is the fabled
Sunstone, which the ancient Incas of Peru believed
harnessed the light of the sun itself. Amherst College
officials welcomed the stone today along with the
American artifact collector who discovered it, Minerva
Smith of Mankato, Minnesota...

TRIP
(TO HIMSELF)
...Minerva?
MINNIE
(THROUGH RADIO)
Thank you. It is a great honor and privilege to be here
among all you fine people today. Thanks for inviting me
to spend a couple of days at your lovely campus. I
gotta tell ya, being away from civilization for a few
years, you really get to appreciate the luxury of a hot
shower and a good meal when ya get back...
 9.

SOUND: CROWD SOFTLY CHUCKLES THROUGH RADIO

MINNIE (cont’d)
...This little rock took a lot of searchin’. The cost
was very dear to me. It deserves to be looked after. I
am happy to see the Sunstone in the hands of such a
fine institution, and I am confident it will be well
taken care of and enjoyed for many years to come...
SOUND: SHOP DOOR BELL
MINNIE (cont’d)
(FLASHBACK)
...you got a few minutes left. You gotta make the most
of it....
SHOPKEEP
Hey there, sonny! Can I help you at all?
YOUNG TRIP
Nah, I’m just lookin’, pops.
SHOPKEEP
Where’s your mother? You ain’t coming in here to start
a ruckus, y’hear?
YOUNG TRIP
Eh, put a sock in it!

SHOPKEEP
Well, do let me know if you need anything.
YOUNG TRIP
Yeah, that’s right, keep it moving, pops.
(TO TRIP)
Hey, what are YOU looking at?
TRIP
Who? Me? I’m... um...
SOUND: FOOTSTEPS

YOUNG TRIP
Oh, I see. A mumbler, ey?
TRIP
Um... n-no, I just-

YOUNG TRIP
Whatchu buyin’?
 10.

TRIP
I’m not sure yet. Still thinking.
YOUNG TRIP
You’re awful big. Are you like a soldier or something?

TRIP
Well as a matter of fact- wait a minute... I know you!
You’re me! Like, a little me.
YOUNG TRIP
Geez. Took you long enough. I thought I was supposed to
be smart.
TRIP
It’s like looking at myself in a youthful mirror... So
weird...

YOUNG TRIP
Oh yeah? What’s so weird about it?
TRIP
Well, for one thing, the timeline isn’t even right. I
remember this place. Mr Whitney’s store... I came here
a lot growing up...
YOUNG TRIP
Well, duh-doy. I know that. I’m you, remember?

TRIP
Yeah, but I remember this day specifically... The South
America exhibit in the Beneski museum opened... I came
in to buy mom a present. I was seventeen. You’re me
when I was, what, seven?

YOUNG TRIP
I’m eight and a half, genius.
TRIP
Why are you even here??

YOUNG TRIP
The man in black put me here. He thought I would be a
comforting presence. I’m sorta like your guide.
TRIP
Why isn’t he here himself?
YOUNG TRIP
Hello?? Comforting presence? Who would you rather have
hangin’ around? Some guy dressed all in black, or my
handsome mug?
 11.

TRIP
Yeah, you got a point.
YOUNG TRIP
I mean just look at this face. How cute am I? Look at
these cheeks! Aren’t these the single most pinchable
cheeks you’ve ever seen?
TRIP
Alright, alright, I get it. Geez. Didn’t realize I was
such a brat.

YOUNG TRIP
Well, the guy in black, he put a little bit of his own
personality in me.
TRIP
Figures.
YOUNG TRIP
This IS an illusion, after all.
TRIP
Got it. So, you’re a guide? A guide to what?
YOUNG TRIP
Just makin’ sure you don’t get lost in your own mind,
that’s all.

TRIP
But what does he- um- what do YOU care if I get lost?
Isn’t that the whole point of me being here? To keep me
prisoner in my own mind?
YOUNG TRIP
Sure, but in the spirit of good sportsmanship, I am
here to make sure you don’t deviate too far from your
established memories.
TRIP
Why?
YOUNG TRIP
Let’s just say I have a child’s wide-eyed curiosity. So
whatchu gettin’ Momma?

TRIP
I don’t know yet...
YOUNG TRIP
Well, you better pick sumpthin’ quick, time’s
a-wastin’!
 12.

TRIP
Actually... I think I remember getting her this
pendant.
SOUND: PENDANT JINGLING

QUILA
(FLASHBACK)
...Sometimes you must steal base to win game...
YOUNG TRIP
Ew, you got her that ratty old thing?
TRIP
Yeah. She always loved kitschy stuff like this. She had
quite the collection.

YOUNG TRIP
Oh yeah! I remember breaking some glass figurine
once... She was mad at me for a whole week!
TRIP
Her glass butterfly. Say, how did you know about that?

YOUNG TRIP
...do we really have to go through this again?
TRIP
So, you know all my memories?

YOUNG TRIP
Everything up to eight and a half.
TRIP
That seems a little self-limiting.

YOUNG TRIP
Sportsmanship, remember?
TRIP
It’s just strange you’d go through all this trouble to
guide me just to limit your own abilities, that’s all.
YOUNG TRIP
Look, you didn’t really start remembering much about
your life until you were my age anyway. I only inhabit
the parts of your memories you can’t fully access.
Don’t think about it too much. Think about solving the
labyrinth.
TRIP
The labyrinth.
 13.

YOUNG TRIP
You were going to buy that pendant...?
TRIP
The pendant. Yeah, I got her this very same one.

YOUNG TRIP
What’s the occasion?
TRIP
...I think it was Mother’s Day. Yeah, that’s right,
Mother’s Day... except that would mean today is the day
she- oh no!
SOUND: HURRIED FOOTSTEPS
YOUNG TRIP
Whoa! You ain’t walkin’ outta here without payin’ for
that thing, ain’tcha?
SHOPKEEP
Young man. Would you be so kind as to use your inside
voice, please? You’re causing quite a ruckus.

YOUNG TRIP
Eh, pipe down, old man!
TRIP
You don’t understand, I gotta go, if I hurry I can
still make it-
YOUNG TRIP
Just buy the pendant first.
TRIP
Why do I need to buy it, isn’t this all just an
illusion?
YOUNG TRIP
Buy the pendant. You got time.

TRIP
Yeah... sure... I’ll buy the pendant...
SOUND: SHOP DOOR BELL
Scene 3: The Lab

SOUND: ALARM BELL

 14.

MILO
Doctor, the Proton Accelerator is destabilizing!
BITTERMAN
Ve need more power!

MILO
I don’t think it can take much more.
BITTERMAN
Turn up the dial!

SOUND: ALARM BELL ACCELERATES

MILO
HypoModule is overheating!

BITTERMAN
Quick! Press more buttons!
SOUND: BUTTONS
SOUND: ELECTRONIC KNOCKING

MILO
It’s too much, I’m gonna switch it off!
BITTERMAN
No! Just a little longer...

MILO
Doctor-
BITTERMAN
JUST. A LITTLE. LONGER...

SOUND: EVERYTHING SUDDENLY SHUTS OFF

SOUND: ELECTRONICS POWERING DOWN
SOUND: CRACKLE OF CEILING LIGHTS

SOUND: SPARKS
BITTERMAN (cont’d)
Crap. Crap, crap, crap, crap, crap!

MILO
I told you we were pushing it too hard!
SOUND: BUTTONS
 15.

MILO (cont’d)
Automatic shut off kicked in. We can cycle the power
and try again, but we can’t keep pushing it hard. The
neutron flow is at maximum capacity.

BITTERMAN
Zhere’s got to be a vay to increase the magnetic
resonance!
MILO
Unless you have access to any planets or large
asteroids, the machine just can’t take it. The neutron
flow is tapped out.
BITTERMAN
Vait a second, vhat if... vhat if ve reverse ze
polarity?

MILO
...reverse the polarity?
BITTERMAN
Yes.

MILO
...of the neutron flow?
BITTERMAN
Yes.
MILO
No, no, wait, we’ve been through this, that’s not a
real thing.

BITTERMAN
Okay. Yes. But vhat if ve made it a real zhing?
MILO
...You wanna make the impossible possible?

BITTERMAN
YOU vere ze one just telling me to reach out to Trip in
between dimensions! NOW you’re vorried about making ze
impossible possible? Vhat have ve been doing zhis whole
time?? Ve created the timevatch, didn’t ve...?

MILO
...I’m listening.
SOUND: BANGING ON THE DOOR
SOUND: SHOUTING FROM OUTSIDE THE DOOR
 16.

JOHNSON
Doctor Bitterman, this is Agent Johnson of the FBI. We
have the place surrounded. Open these doors and come
out with your hands up!

MILO
The feds!
BITTERMAN
They found me! No, no, no, ve need more time! Listen to
me, I’ve got to keep going, but it’s me zhey vant, not
you. You can still make a run for it. I’ve got to keep
trying.
MILO
I’m not going anywhere.

SOUND: KNOCKING CONTINUES

JOHNSON
Doctor Bitterman, we know you’re in there! If we have
to break this door down there will be hell to pay!

MILO
What do we do first?
BITTERMAN
Alright. Svitch ze Quantumn spanner exhaust lines, turn
ze micronetic capacitor forty-five degrees to ze right,
and cross your toes.
MILO
What about my fingers?
BITTERMAN
Lots of buttons to be pressed. Ve’re gonna need every
finger ve can spare.
SOUND: TRANSITION MUSIC
Commercial

SOUND: 80S ACTION MUSIC AND SOUND EFFECTS

80’S ANNOUNCER
New from JPP Toys, it’s TIMEWATCH from TIME TRIP! THE
SERIES!

BILLY
Look at me! I’m Trip Timeskipper!
 17.

80’S ANNOUNCER
Now YOU can travel the quantum plane and save the
fabric of spacetime from the evil clutches of Annibal
Karacas!

FLYNN
You won’t get away that easy, young Timeskipper!
BILLY
I can feel everything!
SOUND: ZWIP! (SLIDE WHISTLE)

FLYNN
Billy! Billy! Where did you go?? Mom! Billy’s
disappeared!

80’S ANNOUNCER
TIMEWATCH, from JPP Toys. Part of the new line of TIME
TRIP! THE SERIES toys. Tinfoil hats and Zap Guns sold
separately. Use toy as directed. Not responsible for
any lost or disintegrated children. Look for it at your
local toy store!

Scene 4: A Sidewalk of the Mind

NARRATOR
Trapped inside the Fifth Dimension and forced to play
Karacas’ cruel game, Trip Timeskipper and a younger
version of himself, leave Mrs Whitney’s Knick-Knack
shop with a newly purchased pendant hanging around his
neck...
SOUND: FOOTSTEPS

TRIP
Come on, li’l me, we gotta hurry!
YOUNG TRIP
Do you remember where you’re going?

TRIP
Of course, I do. It’s weird. You could be gone from
somewhere for years and years and when you get back its
like you never left.
YOUNG TRIP
Then why are you going the wrong way?
TRIP
What do you mean? The accident happened in the south
part of town at the corner of Olive and High Streets.
 18.

YOUNG TRIP
Right... But you didn’t go there immediately after you
bought the pendant. Remember?
TRIP
Who cares? Mom is going to die!
YOUNG TRIP
She’s already dead. All this is already in the past.
You have to follow your memories. Exactly as they
happened.

TRIP
Why?
YOUNG TRIP
That’s just the way this works.

TRIP
Why??
YOUNG TRIP
Look, I don’t make the rules-

TRIP
YES, YOU DO! You are the only one making the rules! You
better tell me what’s really going on RIGHT NOW, or I’m
not moving another inch.

YOUNG TRIP
Aw, what?? Come on! We gotta keep to the schedule. What
are you doing?
TRIP
I told you, I’m not moving unless you tell me what’s
going on.
YOUNG TRIP
Okay, fine, look. Memories. They’re like... pictures.
Snapshots. Frozen bits of Spacetime locked inside your
brain.
TRIP
...Spacetime?
YOUNG TRIP
Yeah.
TRIP
...Locked?
 19.

YOUNG TRIP
Yeah.

TRIP
...In my brain?
YOUNG TRIP
Yeah.

TRIP
That’s ridiculous. If it was spacetime, that would
mean-
YOUNG TRIP
-Energy? Mass? Gravity? It’s all in there, pal. Locked
away. Your subconscious mind keeps you from accessing
this energy. It suppresses your memories from childhood
because that is when the Spacetime in your brain is
most accessible. The more we learn about the world, the
more we’re able to use that energy to develop physical
traits and personalities. That’s why we age so quickly
the first fifteen years of our lives, and then slow
down and decay over the next sixty years. The energy is
still there, we just forget how to use it.
TRIP
That’s the silliest thing I’ve ever heard.
YOUNG TRIP
Oh yeah? How ’bout the timewatch, genius?
TRIP
...what about the timewatch?
YOUNG TRIP
How does it work? It draws energy from inside of you to
turn back your body’s clock and return the use of your
legs. The watch itself has no power on its own, it only
acts as a rudder to steer your energy. You can’t
control it because you don’t know how, but you could
theoretically power your watch by simply willing it so.
TRIP
So that’s how you do it. You figured out a way to tap
into the spacetime in your brain, didn’t you? Except
you can use it without a rudder.
YOUNG TRIP
...things haven’t always been so easy. But you learn
from your mistakes and you get up when you fall and you
try, try again, until one day you unlock the right
door, and you make the jump. Recently, though, things
haven’t been easy again.
 20.

TRIP
It’s a finite resource.
YOUNG TRIP
You only have so many memories.

TRIP
So that’s why you needed the sunstone. You ran out of
power.
YOUNG TRIP
Yes, but if all goes according to plan, that won’t be a
problem anymore.
TRIP
Why?

YOUNG TRIP
Because from now on I’m not waiting for the next power
source to run out. I’m harvesting your memories, Trip.
Every snapshot we encounter unlocks another door inside
of you and delivers another jolt of energy to me. After
I’m done with you, I will move on to the next person,
and to the next one, and to the next, taking the energy
of every living thing if I have to, until my thirst is
quenched. I have too many things to learn, too many
things to see, and a whole eternity to see them.
TRIP
...you’re taking these memories from me?
YOUNG TRIP
I chose these specific moments because they are
especially powerful, but for the full energy to come
through you must follow your steps exactly as you did
the day your mother died.
TRIP
Why would I help you destroy my past?

YOUNG TRIP
Because I’m giving you a sporting chance. Believe it or
not, I like you, Trip. You’ve grown on me. If you find
your watch and make it work, I will allow you to keep
your spacetime.

TRIP
...and if I fail?
YOUNG TRIP
Then I wipe your brain clean, and you float through
interdimensional space for the rest of eternity. Look
at the bright side, you’ll be a vegetable, so you won’t
(MORE)
 21.

YOUNG TRIP (cont’d)

really miss anything about your life, your world, your
past.
TRIP
You’re an evil man.
YOUNG TRIP
Who? Little ol’ me? With the pinchable cheeks? Ha. You
know, I rather like this new body. Methinks I’ll keep
it after I’m done with you. Stretch it out a little.

TRIP
You MONSTER!
YOUNG TRIP
What will it be, Trip? Go through the motions of the
worst day of your life for a chance to win the game and
go back home, or give up and remain trapped in this
moment forever?
SOUND: FOOTSTEPS

YOUNG TRIP (cont’d)

Hey! Don’t walk away from me. I’m talking to you! Where
are you going??
TRIP
The Dizzy Hop Diner. I went there for ice cream after I
bought the pendant.
SOUND: YOUNG TRIP CATCHING UP
YOUNG TRIP
Haha! Yes! NOW we’re having fun.

TRIP
But I want you to know one thing. If I win, I’ll come
after you, and I will hunt you down, and I won’t EVER
stop until you’re dead. I don’t care if you look like
me. I’ll kill you if I have to.

YOUNG TRIP
Mmm... I LIKE a challenge. Very well, I accept your
terms. Now, on to get some ice cream! I suddenly have a
hankering for Rocky Road...

TRIP
Yeah. Me too.
SOUND: TRANSITION MUSIC
 22.

Scene 5: The Lab

SOUND: THE MACHINES POWERING UP
BITTERMAN
How much longer?

MILO
Maybe two minutes.
SOUND: BANGING ON THE DOOR

JOHNSON
Doctor Bitterman! Don’t make this harder than it has to
be!
BITTERMAN
Come on, come on! Vhat is taking so long??
MILO
Everything’s reversing, it’s like changing directions
on a sailboat, it doesn’t happen instantly, you have to
be patient.

BITTERMAN
Increase the speed!
MILO
We’re going to overheat the machine again!

SOUND: SWITCHES AND BUTTONS

JOHNSON
What are you doing in there?! Don’t you even dare try
to escape! There’s no place in this world where you can
hide from the United States Government! Give yourself
up!
BITTERMAN
Zhink, Zhink Meira. Vhat if ve pump cool air unto ze
main panel?

MILO
If we do that we risk the logic board freezing.
Besides, I think the accelerator is overheating.
BITTERMAN
Zo vhat if ve cool it?
MILO
Sure, but that may take more energy to reroute. Adding
any more energy inputs will overload the system. We
just have to be patient.
 23.

SOUND: RAMMING AT THE DOOR

BITTERMAN
How much longer?

MILO
Less than a minute...
BITTERMAN
Divert auxiliary power to ze primary buffer panel.
SOUND: BUTTONS

MILO
Holding steady. So far so good.
JOHNSON
Alright! You’ve had your chance! We’re coming in!
SOUND: RAMMING AT THE DOOR
BITTERMAN
Scheisse! Zhey’re breaking down ze door!

MILO
Almost there...
SOUND: RAMMING CONTINUES

BITTERMAN
Ready ze big red button!
MILO
Button ready!

SOUND: RAMMING INTENSIFIES

SOUND: ELECTRONIC WHIRRING
MILO (cont’d)
We’re on! We’ve reached maximum capacity! It’s REALLY
flowing too!
BITTERMAN
Start ze jump sequence. Stand by to press ze big red
button unt flash ze timevatch!

MILO
Standing by.
SOUND: DOOR CRACKS FROM THE RAMMING
 24.

MILO (cont’d)
They’re coming through!
BITTERMAN
No! Not yet! Ve need more time!

JOHNSON
I hear them! They’re inside!
MILO
What do we do now?

SOUND: DOOR CRACKS AGAIN

Scene 6: A Sidewalk of the Mind
SOUND: DOOR SHUTTING

SOUND: FOOTSTEPS
SOUND: LICKING ICE CREAM
YOUNG TRIP
Yum! I think this might be the best rocky road I’ve
ever had!
TRIP
Dizzy’s always had the best ice cream.

YOUNG TRIP
I’m going to really enjoy keeping this memory.
TRIP
I’m not beaten yet.

YOUNG TRIP
So, where to next?
TRIP
Mother. It’s almost time.

YOUNG TRIP
Ah, yes, the big moment. You ready?
TRIP
You know, this is hard enough already without you
mocking me.

YOUNG TRIP
I’m not mocking you. I’m just making sure.
 25.

TRIP
I’m as ready as I’ll ever be.
YOUNG TRIP
Olive and High, right?

TRIP
Yeah, we turn down this way-
SOUND: DOGS BARKING AND SNARLING
YOUNG TRIP
Aaaah!!!!
DOGWALKER
Sorry about that. Fifi! Peanut! Bad dogs!

SOUND: DOGS AND DOGWALKER WALK AWAY

TRIP
What was that all about?
YOUNG TRIP
Huh?
TRIP
Those tiny dogs just attacked you. Wait, are you
crying?

YOUNG TRIP
(SNIFFLING)
...no.
TRIP
Are you scared?

YOUNG TRIP
N- No...
TRIP
You are! You’re terrified.

YOUNG TRIP
Shut up. Hurry up and get to mother so we can leave
this stinkhole behind.

MINNIE
(FLASHBACK)
I ain’t never gettin’ outta this stinkhole.
TRIP
What did you say?
 26.

YOUNG TRIP
I said, let’s get to mother.
SOUND: CHILDREN PLAYING
TRIP
We’re already here.
YOUNG TRIP
We are?

TRIP
Yeah. I remember walking up by this parking lot.
There’s the Temple on the other side. All the kids are
just now getting out of Hebrew school. There’s little
Larry Cohen. His brother Andy and I were best friends.
We joined the army together. He died on the front line.

ANDY
(FASHBACK)
You’ll tell him yourself, Trip! You’re gonna make it!
YOUNG TRIP
Oh yeah! I remember him! Little Larry was the weird kid
who always played with fake hats.
TRIP
Pirate hats made of tinfoil. He was Captain Cohen of
the Seven Seas.

YOUNG TRIP
I remember.
TRIP
...And then mom walked around that corner and spotted
me...
MOTHER
(FROM ACROSS THE STREET)
Trip! Trip! Over here!

TRIP
She was so excited to see me. She always was. She just
started walking without paying attention. She’s
crossing the street...

MOTHER
Trip!
TRIP
...I’ve got to stop her! Mother! No!
 27.

YOUNG TRIP
Wait. You can’t.
TRIP
I can’t? What do you mean I can’t? Didn’t you say I had
the power to change my past?

YOUNG TRIP
Yes. You do. But you won’t find your watch here. And if
you stop this, you will never leave this moment.

TRIP
But, I can’t just let her die again.
YOUNG TRIP
This is just a memory. A snapshot of the past.

MOTHER
Trip, honey!
TRIP
I can’t.

YOUNG TRIP
You have to.
TRIP
No.

YOUNG TRIP
It isn’t time yet.
TRIP
No.

SOUND: TIRES SQUEALING

TRIP (cont’d)
MOTHER!!!!
SOUND: CRASH!

SOUND: RUNNING AND SCREAMING CHILDREN

TRIP (cont’d)
Mother!

DRIVER
I didn’t see her. She just walked right in front of me!
I didn’t see her!
 28.

MOTHER
T-tr-trip?
TRIP
I’m here, mom.

MOTHER
I love you, son.
TRIP
I love you too. Please. Don’t go.

MOTHER
Don’t...
TRIP
No. Not again.

MOTHER
Don’t...
TRIP
What? What are you trying to say? Please.

MOTHER
...Let go, Trip.
TRIP
I won’t. I’ll never let go. Never.

MOTHER
...Let go.
SOUND: FINAL BREATH

TRIP
Noooooooo!
SOUND: TRIP RUNS AWAY
YOUNG TRIP
(CATCHING UP)
Whoa! Trip! Where do you think are you going?
TRIP
I can’t do this. Not again. You know what I’ve been
through to forget this moment?? A year and a half ago,
I was in France fighting for my country. I was making a
difference. Trying to win back my family, trying to win
back my father’s love. I couldn’t even do that. I got
shot. Then these agents from the main office ask if I
wanted to walk again. If I wanted to serve my country
better than I ever could on the front lines. If I
(MORE)
 29.

TRIP (cont’d)
wanted to make my family proud of me. Of course, I
didn’t care about any of that! I just wanted to see my
mother again. And now I have. And you just forced me to
lose her all over. I can’t do this. It’s too painful.
YOUNG TRIP
So that’s it then? You’re just giving up?
TRIP
I have to face the facts. Time is not on my side. If
giving up means I never have to remember this day ever
again... then so be it. Take my memories. I’m done. You
win.
SOUND: TRANSITION MUSIC
NARRATOR
Is Trip doomed to an eternity of floating through the
Fifth Dimension without his memories? Find out next
time!
Epilogue
SOUND: THEME MUSIC

NARRATOR
We hope you have enjoyed A Sidewalk of the Mind. We’ll
see you next time for... Raiders of the Fifth
Dimension. You’ve been listening to... TIME TRIP, the
Continuing Adventures of Private Trip Timeskipper! From
all of us here at Just Press Playhouse, so long, and
happy adventures!
To Be Continued