12 Yeah, But What’s Mightier Than a Sword

CHAPTER TWELVE YEAH, BUT WHAT'S MIGHTIER THAN A SWORD? I know," Franny said, and she picked up a pen. She quickly drew a big screw on her chest and some lines on her sleeves to look like the Franbots' segmented arms and legs. She drew screws on her face, and stood as stiffly as she could.

"I hope this works," she whispered. Franny knew that if her performance showed any lack of confidence, the Franbots would see right through her disguise. The Franbots were scattered all over the lab, busy practicing their various excellent skills. Franny walked right up to Franbot Number One, who was playing the bagpipes, and in the most mechanical voice she could fake, she asked: "Practicing for the recital tomorrow, are you?"

The Franbot looked up. "Recital?" it repeated, totally fooled by Franny's drawn-on screws and segments.

"That's right," Franny said. "A recital. Everybody will be there. Everybody will be watching. Everybody will be judging your performance to see if you're really excellent, or not." Franbot Number One looked worried. "How do you think I'll do?" it said. Franny shook her head sadly. "Average. The other players can play much louder, and hold the notes much longer." "But, I must be excellent," the Franbot whimpered. "I've also heard that several of them can hit a high J note," Franny added. "There's no such thing as a J note," the Franbot scoffed. "The musical scale doesn't go up to J."

"Maybe your scale doesn't. But don't worry about it. I'm sure you'll be okay."

That wasn't good enough for Franbot Number One. It was driven to be excellent, and that's exactly what it planned to be. Determined to hit the impossibly high note that Franny had made up, it gathered up all of its breath, put its steel lips over the mouthpiece of the bagpipe...