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There had never been a Tremorton High talent show like this before. Word of Epiphany Crust’s electrifying stage presence had spread through town. The performance had been moved to the football field, where a temporary stage had been built and the bleachers could accommodate her burgeoning fanbase.

As the spectators found seats, Tuck Carbuckle warmed them up with a series of knock-knock jokes. The crowd seemed to love his act, though Dr. Wakeman might’ve been the only one laughing unironically. He was only halfway through his set when his big brother Brad swiped his mic.

“Hello, Tremorton!” bellowed Brad. 

No response from the crowd. 

“Uh. . . um. And welcome to the 50^th Annual Tremorton High Talent Show!”

From high in the bleachers someone yelled, “The high school was only built thirty-two years ago, lamebrain!”

A hearty laugh from the crowd.

Public humiliation was nothing new to Brad Carbuckle, so he went on as boldly as before. “Before Epiphany Crust takes the stage, we have a late breaking addition to today’s program. At the very last minute, a new contestant signed up. Please put your hands together for the one and only teenage robot of Tremorton — Jenny ‘XJ9’ Wakeman!”

All heads turned as a low boom sounded from the horizon. A blip in the sky rapidly grew as something rocketed towards the assembled crowd. 

“It’s a bird!”

“It’s a plane!”

“No,” Brad said flatly. “I already told you. It’s Jenny Wakeman.”

Jenny dipped down and buzzed the crowd so they could get a good look at her new, supersonic, quadruple boosted airfoils. They gasped in alarm and amazement. 

She soared through a banking turn, then made another pass, this time upside down. The crowd oohed and aahed. 

Executing a giant loop, she dove directly at them before pulling up at the last second. They shrieked, then cheered.

For her grand finale, Jenny activated the airfoils’ skywriting feature and sent a message that was sure to please, with the contraband Canopus 13 in her fuel mixture lending the words an extra sparkle.

The crowd cheered louder. The students hooted and hollered. The three talent show judges raised their scorecards, each displaying a perfect score of 10. Jenny was elated. Choke on that, Epiphany, she thought. She decided to take a victory lap before coming in for a landing. She ceased skywriting and slowed, waving to her adoring fans as she circled low over the bleachers.

But then Jenny felt a rumble in her manifold that could only be an errant cloud of the volatile Canopus 13. Without further warning, her system backfired and a rancid plume of black smoke blanketed the bleachers. Coughing and choking convulsed the crowd as Jenny landed in front of the stage.

Laughing uproariously, Tuck grabbed the mic back from Brad and said, “Way to gas ‘em, Jen! And you didn’t even need your fanny pack!”