High-altitude rigging day arrived without ceremony.
No dramatic music.
No ominous thunder.
Just a quiet morning where everyone pretended this was normal.
It wasn't.
The Height
The rig stretched upward like a skeleton of steel.
Higher than anything they'd used before.
Higher than anyone wanted to look.
The platform sat far above the set, lights shrinking below it, people reduced to careful dots.
Daniel stood at the base, craning his neck.
"…That's too high."
Ben didn't disagree.
"That's exactly the right height."
Daniel stared at him.
"That sentence shouldn't exist."
Safety Briefing (Extra Long, Extra Serious)
Ben gathered the crew.
Harness checks.
Redundancies.
Backups for the backups.
"Listen carefully," he said.
"If anything feels wrong, we abort. No heroics."
His eyes flicked to Aria.
She nodded.
"Yes."
Ben hesitated.
"…And Aria?"
"Yes."
"No improvising."
She paused.
"…Understood."
Daniel whispered to Mason:
"That pause means danger."
Mason swallowed.
"I know."
Aria Gears Up
The harness fit her perfectly.
Too perfectly.
Every strap aligned.
Every buckle settled like it belonged there.
Ben checked twice.
Then a third time.
Then, quietly, a fourth.
"You're clear," he said.
Aria looked up.
"…The wind is stronger."
Ben stiffened.
"It is?"
"Yes."
He checked the readout.
She was right.
Daniel whispered:
"She felt it before the sensors."
Mason squeezed his eyes shut.
Julian Approaches
Julian stopped beside her.
"You okay?"
She met his gaze.
"Yes."
He studied her face.
Not nervous.
Not excited.
Focused.
"You don't have to do anything extra," he said.
She nodded.
"I won't."
Daniel mouthed silently:
She's lying again.
Going Up
The lift began.
Slow.
Careful.
Aria rose above the set.
Higher.
And higher.
The crew grew smaller.
The air thinner.
The wind louder.
Daniel's hands were shaking.
"Why is she so calm?"
Mason didn't answer.
Ben watched the monitors like a hawk.
"She's adjusting again," one tech muttered.
Ben snapped:
"Don't say that."
At Altitude
The platform locked into place.
Aria stood high above everything.
The lights were distant stars.
The floor looked unreal.
Ben spoke into the mic.
"Aria. You're at height. Hold position."
"I am holding."
The readout twitched.
Ben frowned.
"Don't compensate."
She stilled.
Too still.
Daniel whispered:
"She stopped breathing."
Julian murmured:
"No. She's listening."
A Bad Feeling
Ben checked the rigging one last time.
Everything green.
Everything correct.
And yet—
He couldn't shake it.
He looked up at Aria.
She was staring at the wall beside the platform.
Not the camera.
Not the ground.
The wall.
"…Aria?" Ben said slowly.
"What are you looking at?"
She answered without hesitation.
"…The distance."
Silence followed.
Daniel swallowed.
"That's not comforting."
Mason's Final Thought
Mason watched her standing there, small against the empty space.
A thought crossed his mind, unwanted and sharp:
She's done this before.
Not this rig.
Not this set.
But height.
And falling.
He rubbed his face.
"I don't like this."
No one did.
Closing Beat
Ben raised his hand.
"Okay. We rehearse the motion.
No drop. No pull. Just positioning."
Aria shifted her feet.
One step closer to the edge.
Daniel shouted:
"WHY DID SHE MOVE?!"
Aria replied calmly, her voice steady over the comms:
"To measure."
The wind picked up.
The rig creaked—just slightly.
And far below, the set waited.