*****
"And here we are at the semi-final competition," Cold Chill announced, "and three bands will be performing tonight. Only two of them will be back next week for the final competition. It's been a long and tough fight to the end. Many changes have taken place, as you will see when the curtain opens. But the best band will be chosen by our judges and you, the audience. Remember to vote by texting the number at the bottom of the screen. And now, here is the first band in tonight's competition…Rock Solid!"
Screams and cheers filled the television studio as fans leapt out of their seats holding signs. The curtain opened and Susan strutted out onto the stage as the band launched into the song, "Another Day".
The whole theater was soon rocking to the music. Susan belted out the song and danced and moved gracefully while Pete and Danny sang back-up vocals.
Kelly and Taylor stood in the wings watching Susan sing their song,
"I can't believe she has the nerve to do this," Kelly remarked, shaking her head.
"I'm not a bit surprised," Taylor replied, "This is exactly the kind of thing she would do. And you know what? I'm glad she's out of the band, even if we don’t win. Things will be a lot smoother with her gone."
Leisha came up behind them and put her arms over their shoulders.
"Forget about her," she said, nodding toward Susan, "Let's just go out there and play our hearts out and give it everything we've got…and most of all: have fun!"
"Amen!" Taylor grinned and they hugged.
There was thunderous applause and screaming as Rock Solid ended their tune.
Joey appeared from the darkened backstage and shouted, "C'mon ladies! Time to rock!"
The girls followed him back to the rear of the stage where their equipment was set up, ready to go. Everything had gone well during the afternoon rehearsal and the girls were feeling confident about their new song. Taylor checked the power on her keyboard as Ashley adjusted her drum seat. Leisha and Kelly put on their guitars and double-checked to make sure they were still in tune. From behind the curtain, they could hear Cold Chill talking to the audience while the roadies for Rock Solid moved their equipment off the stage.
The girls stood, waiting with pounding hearts, looking at each other and smiling nervously. Joey gave them a thumbs-up sign and told them, "Just let it rip, ladies! Give it all you've got!"
They nodded in agreement. Cold Chill ended his introduction saying,
"And here they are…Nightingale!"
The curtains opened and Ashley counted off four beats on her sticks. The guitars and keyboard slammed out the first chord as the audience began to clap in beat to the music. Leisha and Kelly began singing the first verse, "You think you're so bad--"
No sound came from the vocals. Then suddenly the guitars went dead and the keyboard stopped working. The girls looked at one another. Ashley suddenly realized she was playing a drum solo and stopped. Technicians in the wings began running around in confusion. The clapping in the audience faded and a few whistles and shouts of, “We can’t hear you!” echoed in the theatre.
Cold Chill ran out onto the stage with a mike and announced,
"We seem to be having some technical difficulties with the sound. After a word from our sponsor we'll be right back!"
The curtains swiftly closed and Joey came running on stage.
"What happened?"
"No power! We lost all power!" Leisha cried.