Scene: A barren, featureless landscape. The characters are standing in a loose circle, unaware of the bizarre rules that govern their existence.
The Flat Earther, a man with wild eyes and an intense expression, is the first to speak.
Flat Earther: (confidently) "Look, it’s simple. The Earth is flat. Anyone who says otherwise is just lying to you."
He pauses, waiting for confirmation, but nothing happens. Suddenly, he flickers out of existence. The others blink in confusion.
Climate Denier: (with a dismissive hand wave) "Oh, this is just like that time I said the climate's always changed. There’s nothing to worry about. It’s all exaggerated."
The Climate Denier grins, feeling smug. Then—flicker. She disappears.
Moon Landing Denier: "Right! And the moon landing? Total hoax. All staged. Everyone knows that."
As soon as he finishes, poof—he vanishes too. The remaining characters look at each other, confused.
Gravity Denier: "It’s all a big joke. Gravity doesn’t even exist. It’s just a theory."
Flicker. Vanished.
Science Denier: "See, science is just a bunch of ideas that can be disproven. Nothing we really know is solid. Everything is just... a guess."
Nothing happens this time. The Science Denier looks around. No flicker. They glance nervously at the empty space where the others were.
Science Denier: "What... what just happened?"
Suddenly, all the characters reappear at once, looking just as bewildered as before. They stand frozen for a moment.
Flat Earther: (dazed) "Did I—did I just... disappear?"
Climate Denier: "What happened? Where did we—"
Moon Landing Denier: "This is insane... was it the words? I didn’t—"
Gravity Denier: (pointing dramatically) "It was your fault! You were talking nonsense, not me!"
Science Denier: "Wait, hold on. Was that because... we said things that weren't true?"
Flat Earther: (quickly) "I don’t care what happened. The Earth is still flat, though."
Flicker. The Flat Earther vanishes again. The others look around, half-expecting to disappear themselves.
Climate Denier: (panicking) "What’s going on? Is it the words we’re saying? Does this... does this mean we’re wrong?"
The Science Denier tentatively steps forward, trying to grasp the situation.
Science Denier: "Okay, okay, let’s test this. We all came back just now, right? So, if I say something that makes sense—like... gravity exists, it’s a fact—"
He pauses, hoping for the best. The others are silent, watching. After a beat, he speaks again.
Science Denier: "Gravity is real."
Poof. He reappears. The others stare at him.
Science Denier: "It works. It really works."
Moon Landing Denier: "But—what about the moon landing?!"
Science Denier: "What about it? It happened. You were wrong."
Gravity Denier: (still skeptical) "I still don’t believe it. I won’t say it. Gravity’s not real."
Flicker. Gone again.
Flat Earther: (reappearing, grumbling) "This is nonsense. I’m going to say it again. The Earth is flat."
Poof. Gone.
Scene continues: The group slowly reappears, one by one.
Flat Earther: (appearing again, still fuming) "This is absurd. Clearly, the world is flat. I’ll prove it! I’ll build a giant ramp and drive to the edge. You’ll see—"
Moon Landing Denier: "You’re going to drive to the edge of the world? Are you completely insane?"
Flat Earther: "You’ll see! You all think I’m wrong, but I’ll make it happen. The ramp will be there, and I’ll drive right off. Watch."
He starts pacing, talking to himself and getting increasingly excited.
Climate Denier: "I’m just going to start saying the world’s climate is fine. No more of this ‘it’s all burning’ nonsense."
The Climate Denier starts shouting at the sky.
Climate Denier: "Global warming is a hoax! Nothing’s happening! The Earth’s weather is fine!"
She flickers out again. The remaining characters turn to watch her reappear with a startled expression.
Moon Landing Denier: "Alright, I’m not talking nonsense this time. I’ll say the moon landing definitely happened."
The group looks at him, waiting. A beat of silence. Nothing happens.
Moon Landing Denier: (nervously) "I mean... it wasn’t all a hoax. Some parts were real, right?"
Flicker. Gone again.
Science Denier: (stepping up cautiously) "Okay. Let’s just think about this. We’ve all disappeared at some point. But every time we speak sense, we reappear. That can’t be a coincidence. It must mean something."
The others stare at him, not sure if they want to listen to reason.
Gravity Denier: "But what does it mean? Does this universe only work if we believe it’s true? That can’t be right. Nothing makes sense."
Science Denier: "What makes sense is that we’re all being punished for denying the obvious. Denying science, denying facts—whatever we’re doing, it’s what’s causing this."
Flat Earther: "I still don’t buy it. The Earth is flat. You’re all brainwashed by the system, and I’m going to prove it. I’m going to prove it so hard, you’ll all—"
Poof. Gone again.
The remaining characters are left in an awkward silence.
Climate Denier: "I don’t get it. We all came back when we said something true. So maybe... maybe there’s something to it. But we can’t just admit everything we’ve said was wrong. That would be... too much."
Moon Landing Denier: "We’ve been wrong about everything! The moon landing, gravity, climate change. Everything we’ve said is... just wrong."
Gravity Denier: "No. I’m not saying it. Gravity doesn’t exist."
Flicker. Gone.
Scene: A few minutes later, the characters begin to reappear.
Flat Earther: (grumbling as he reappears) "I’m not giving in. Not now, not ever."
Moon Landing Denier: "Why are we all disappearing? Why can’t we get this right?"
Science Denier: "Because we’re clinging to things we know aren’t true. Things that go against reality."
Flat Earther: (stubbornly) "The Earth is flat. I don’t care what you say. I’ll keep saying it until I’m right."
Poof. Gone again.
Climate Denier: "We can’t just keep doing this. We can’t keep denying everything and expect things to go our way."
Moon Landing Denier: "So what do we do? Say everything is true? Agree with everything they say in the textbooks?"
Science Denier: "Not everything. But we can’t keep pretending we know everything either. Maybe we need to accept that knowledge isn’t final, that it’s always evolving. And that there’s no shame in changing our minds when presented with better evidence."
The group is silent. For a moment, they all look at each other.
Gravity Denier: (muttering to himself) "I don’t know if I can do that. I really don’t know."
Scene: The group stands, a mix of uncertainty and frustration hanging in the air. Some flicker back in as they test different statements. There’s a slow build of tension as they navigate the absurd rules of this new world. The struggle is internal: can they accept the uncertainty of knowledge, or will their stubbornness drive them to keep denying the evidence?
