Hey, guys, I posted chapter 8, as you can see. This is the turning point in the story. Back to average sized chapters; not too long or too short like the last two chapters. Hope you guys like it!

I DO NOT OWN ANY CHARACTERS THAT ARE NOT OF MY OWN CREATION! IN OTHER WORDS, I DO NOT OWN THE WORDGIRL CHARACTERS!

"Chapter 8: Choice"

I knew immediately where I was. I had seen is once already. The Dead Lord's throne room. Everything, I way I remembered it. Not a very nice, happy place to be.

Although, seeing villains doing average people things was a little weird.

Emeric was sitting on a chair near the black shrouded throne, doing a crossword puzzle. He seemed to be doing well.

"Master, do you know a weapon that begins with an r and ends in an e? It has 5 letters," The villain asked. "The clue is a gun. That's all."

Sticking out of the black, were two hands holding a newspaper.

"Rifle, perhaps?" The Dead Lord answered, flipping to the next page in the paper.

"Wow, that's right," Emeric replied.

He wrote down the word on the paper. The word gave him a lot more answers. It was a couple minutes before either of them spoke again.

"Emeric?"

Emeric looked up from his puzzle. "Yes, master?"

"Do you remember 'The Lost Child'?" The Dead Lord asked, the name sending a shiver down my invisible spine.

Me. They were talking about me.

"Um, of course, master," The lieutenant responded.

He turned back to his crossword, uninterested in the conversation.

"What do you think Lexicon would do if they learned she was dead?" The master asked another.

Then, suddenly Emeric was interested!

"She's dead?" Emeric dropped his pencil as he jumped up off of his chair and back down again.

"No, she isn't, you idiot! I was just being metaphorical!"

"Um, well," Emeric stuttered, "They would probably be very upset. Either angry with the person who did it, or grieving her death, unable to do anything else."

If I had seen the Dead Lord's face, I'd bet my unicorns collection that he grinned.

"Really? Interesting."

"It's not really that interesting, sir. The only thing that would be interesting is if we found out she was actually alive and who she is," Emeric disagreed, returning to his puzzle.

"I know that she's alive," The Dead Lord answered. "I know who she is."

Emeric jumped out of his seat again. Geez, he must've been sore by then. "You do, sir?"

"I most certainly do. And we will use this new found information to our advantage."

The lieutenant stared at the darkness in surprise. "How?"

"It's part of my plot to take down Lexicon, Emeric. You see, we will send someone down to Earth to kill her. We will then show Lexicon that we killed their beloved 'lost child' and they will do either of the two things you said earlier. Then, we will either defeat Lexicon, or take over!" The Dead Lord explained.

He let out an evil laugh. I hated those.

"I see, somewhat, master," Emeric told him, finally setting his crossword puzzle down.

"We will send Rhidion after we capture someone who will give us some critical information. You will do this Emeric."

Emeric nodded, "Who am I to capture, master?"

"Rose Phillips."

I stopped breathing. A chill ran up my spine that time.

The lieutenant bowed and walked off.

"That girl will give us information whether or not that diviner is protecting the girl. Oh, that diviner has been a pain in my ass for far too long!"

"Um, master?"

"WHAT?"

"Can you please tell me who 'the lost child' is?" Emeric asked, stopping at the exit door.

The Dead Lord turned the newspaper around so his servant could see. He showed him a picture of me as Wordgirl, standing next to a tied up Two-Brains.

"Wordgirl, superhero of Fair City."

Lightning flashed.

OOoo

I woke up to the bright lightning and thunder. I could hear the rain pouring heavily onto our house.

Great, a storm.

I stopped breathing. The vision hadn't scared me; it had only shaken me up a little. The vision did some good though. It made it obvious that Paige had somewhat lied to me. She had told me that Lexicon would definitely surrender to him once I was killed, but it wasn't the only option they could take. It was good though. Their anger could drive them to win. But sometimes, anger can blind you.

Not only was that surprising, but the fact that the Dead Lord knew Paige was surprising. Apparently, they've met numerous times, because he said Paige was a pain in the butt, not using his exact words.

Lightning flashed again and I saw a glimpse of a note I hadn't noticed the night before.

I picked it up and it read: 'Hey, Becky. Today, I won't be at school. I'll be scouting the city for Rhidion. Hopefully he has moved on. Don't worry; I can take care of myself. –Paige'

I set the note back down. Was Paige able to fend for herself in a fight? She just seemed so helpless, despite her outgoing attitude. She DID say she could train me. But didn't she say Rhidion was very dangerous? Argh! There was not time to worry about Paige. I had to get to school.

OOoo

Being with my classmates didn't exactly cheer me up. People weren't as happy, because of the storm. The kids were shaken up because of it. Storms NEVER, in Fair City history, came in the mornings. That was the first.

As Violet and Scoops trotted in, I could sense the nervousness in their eyes. The storm was getting to everyone, even me a little. It was foretelling of a bad event, I was sure of it.

As I made my way to class, my eyes searched the crowd for Tobey, but he wasn't there. I knew he would've been up late thinking about me or doing some kind of assignment! I had warned him to get some sleep. He probably slept in that morning.

Our teacher was back, which was a huge relief, since I had hated the sub from the day before. I took my seat and smiled at Violet.

"Gloomy morning, huh, Violet?" I asked, trying to get a conversation started. It was too quiet in the classroom.

"Yeah, gloomy," She responded, sadly. She sighed.

I knew why she was so depressed. Violet had always been a morning person, so I guessed, the storm was making her depressed. It was ruining her morning. Although, if I wasn't her best friend, her attitude would've fooled me into thinking Scoops had broken up with her. 'Cause with her fragile spirit, a break-up would have her pouring her eyes out.

Right then, Mrs. Brown started taking attendance. Tobey still hadn't shown up when she got to his name. I started getting a little worried. Where was he? He'll probably show up later, I thought.

"Alright, class, not that I've finished taking attendance, I have some news," Mrs. Brown announced. "Your projects aren't due until a week from now. I don't know why your sub assigned it for today. Those weren't my directions. She must've really hated one of you."

Everyone turned towards me, even Violet and Scoops. I blushed and smiled. Mrs. Brown hadn't noticed.

"So, did anyone actually finish their project?"

Only Scoops and Violet raised their hands. Mrs. Brown rolled her eyes.

"C'mon, class, cheer. I've given you a whole week to complete your assignment," She told us, smiling.

We did. We burst out cheering. Yeah, Tobey and I hadn't finished our project. We started it, but didn't finish.

"Now, it's time to get on with class."

OOoo

By lunch, I was still worried about Tobey. I knew I shouldn't worry, yet I couldn't help it. I didn't pay much attention to anything or anyone during lunch. My mind was in its thinking non-stop phase.

One thing I DID notice was that Tom the janitor wasn't anywhere. Maybe he had gotten sick. Well, that's what you get; working in the rain. None of my business anyway.

Violet kept trying to talk to me, but I was always zoned out. I could tell she was getting annoyed.

Finally, someone pinched me.

"I'm the best at pinching," Victoria me with her annoying tone of voice, as she started walking away.

"Thanks, Victoria," Violet thanked, waving goodbye.

The girl didn't respond; she just continued walking.

I gasped. "You told her to pinch me?"

"Sorry, Becks, I can't talk to you if you aren't paying attention," The girl apologized.

I sighed. She was correct.

"I'm sorry, Violet. I'm just not in my right mind today," I apologized, putting my hands on my head.

"Because Paige and Tobey aren't here? You're worried about them, right?"

Wow, she was good. She was correct again.

"Well, not Paige. I know where she is, but I'm worried about what she's doing. And Tobey isn't here, so…"

"Don't live in the Worry Castle, Becky," Scoops interrupted. "You can rarely get out of that place. You need to learn to relax."

How could I relax when my friend was in danger and my boyfriend wasn't at school? Well, maybe I was overreacting on the Tobey concept, but worry took control of me. It wouldn't go away after that.

Not until the end of art. That's when it started controlling my actions as well. I knew deep in my gut I had to find out what was going on with Tobey.

This meant I had to play hokey. Which I never planned on doing in my entire life.

"Um, Ms. Champlain," I raised my hand, "May I use the restroom, please?"

She nodded, and I ran to the restroom. Inside a stall, I transformed into Wordgirl and flew off to Tobey's house as fast as I could. What could he possibly be doing all day? Was he still sleeping? Maybe he was playing hokey for a day, but if he was, I was going to give him a piece of my mind!

I transformed back into Becky behind a tree and made my way to the front door. It was surprisingly open. Well, I never did consider maybe that his mother left the house already. Maybe SHE was giving him a day off for good behavior. Good behavior for Tobey is different than good behavior for a normal kid.

I slipped inside, forgetting to knock and made my way to the stairs. His mom's room was across the hall from his. I made my way up the stairs slowly. I didn't know why I was trying to be quiet.

I heard a snore as I got up on the second floor. So Tobey WAS sleeping. How could someone sleep all day?

Though as I looked to my right, I made a confusing realization. Mrs. McAllister was still sleeping on her bed! The door was wide open, so I could see her clearly.

"Um, Mrs. McAllister?" I said into the room from where I was standing.

She awoke with a start.

"Tobey?" She asked groggily.

"No, I'm Becky. I came to see why Tobey isn't at school, but apparently he left somewhere because he left the front door open," I explained as she sat up.

"No. That's impossible. He didn't walk by this morning. Every morning, before he goes anywhere, he has to walk by my room. I have heard him every day since we started doing the routine. It's what wakes me up in the morning. He didn't walk by this morning, so he couldn't have went out of the front door," The mother disagreed.

Her statement made me frown. Then, why was the door open? I just had to go into the room, and see what was up.

As I stepped, the floor made a loud creaking sound that could be heard throughout the whole house. How come I hadn't noticed that the day before?

"See. That's how he wakes me up. The floor creaks. And, oh dear! It's 12 o'clock! Why isn't Tobey up yet? School started a long time ago!" Mrs. McAllister exclaimed, standing up.

"Yeah, that's why I'm here."

I opened Tobey's door once I was there, and peered inside his room.

It was empty!

The bed, though, was a mess, the ceiling fan was on, and, the window was wide open.

I frowned even more and glanced around. Where was Tobey? And why was everything left on like someone left in a hurry?

Walking around the room didn't help very much, just a bunch of books and pictures. Until I made it to his bedside table.

"Another note? Paige," I rolled my eyes. Why couldn't Paige have just told me all of those things the night before? Notes make it seem all creepy.

My heart completely came to a halt and my mind stopped working. My lungs stopped breathing as I read the first sentence on the note.

'This is Rhidion. Yes, Becky Botsford aka Wordgirl! I've kidnapped your boyfriend! And I know who you are! You are an extremely important piece in this puzzle, young superhero. An important player in this game. And if you were out of the picture, the game would be much easier to win. The Dead Lord will be very happy with me very soon. The reward will be huge. Now listen up, if you don't want your boyfriend's body being dumped on your doorstep in the morning, show up at the city auditorium before midnight today. I doubt you'll disappoint me though. BTW: You boyfriend's screams are really entertaining.'

My fingers went numb, letting the note slip out and fall onto the floor.

Oh god. He had Tobey.

Before you could say crap, I was out of the window, flying to my house. I had to save Tobey.

OOoo

Surprisingly, as I flew into my room, Paige was waiting for me. She tried to keep herself calm, but I could see the panic and worry in her eyes. She had read my mind and had seen what I was planning on doing.

"Paige, you can't stop me," I told her, firmly. Nothing would change my mind.

"I'm going to try! This is suicide, Becky!" The girl yelled. "And FYI, suicide is illegal!"

I couldn't hear what she was saying. I was zoned out, worrying about Tobey. I quickly wrote some notes for my family and friends.

"Becky, we need you alive!" Paige grabbed my writing hand. "You can't give in to The Dead Lord's wishes!"

I glared at her. "And sacrifice Tobey to that mad-man?"

"If that's what it takes. Your life is more important than his, and I think he'd agree. You know he would."

No! It didn't matter! I had to save Tobey! It was my duty, my responsibility to take care of the citizens of the city. That was an oath I took when I became a superhero. I would sacrifice my life for an endangered civilian.

"You're making a HUGE mistake. You're playing right into Rhidion's hands. You can't go out and kill yourself! You can't save Lexicon if you are dead!" Paige pushed on.

I couldn't bear listening to her anymore. I finished the notes and folded them up.

"Becky, you made an oath to protect civilians, right? Well, by saving one, you'll be killing a whole planets worth of civilians. The Dead Lord doesn't plan on just seizing; he plans on punishing. That's why Lexicon has to do everything to stop him. They can't give him power, or everyone dies. And do you think you'll save Tobey? Rhidion will come after him once you're dead. There can't be any witnesses. He will come for me after that. This will be the choice that ends you life and many others as well."

I sighed. She had a lot of points. But I couldn't. I felt an unconditional love for Tobey, and I couldn't leave him to die. Like we said, we'd give our lives for the other. I knew what Tobey would do once I went to save him. He'd tell me the same things Paige had already said. But I wasn't going to listen.

"I don't even know how he found out who I was or who was important to me," I told the girl, my back turned to her. It was true.

"You didn't fight any villains, did you?" She asked.

I gulped. Crap.

She gasped. "Becky! That was a huge mistake! Rhidion played you like a fiddle! That wasn't Amazing Rope Guy's idea! Rhidion was seeing you come and then he watched where you went. He followed you and saw who you were! Though, I'm not sure how he knew your name…" She scolded.

I shook my head. I should've known better.

"Becky, please stay," Paige final plead came out like a sad squeak.

"You can't force me, Paige," I replied.

"I could if I wanted. My mind can give me the voice of a leader if I want. I could make you bend to my will," She told me.

I gasped. She had a powerful gift. She was going to force me to stay.

"But I'm not going to. I'd never force that upon somebody. I'm not going to make someone do something they don't want to. I'm NOT going to take someone's will away from them," Paige continued. "All I can do is try to convince you."

She was a really good person. To not use a gift like that was most likely difficult.

"Paige… I hope you survive this. Give these to the people they are meant for. I CAN'T stay," I answered, putting all of my power into my words. She had to know I was serious.

I handed her carefully the letters I had written. I looked up at her eyes and they were filling with tears.

"Then…I guess…this is goodbye."

I nodded and carefully hugged her.

"Yeah," I mumbled.

I started walking away from her, as my tears showed up. I had to do it. I knew deep in my heart, I just HAD to save Tobey, or I'd regret it forever. I decided to take one more stroll around my room, since I would never see it again.

"What do you plan on telling my friends and parents?" I asked curiously. I wasn't trying to procrastinate, but I sort of was.

"I don't know. I obviously can't tell them the truth or they will be targets of The Dead Lord," The girl responded, sadly.

I walked to the window.

"Goodbye, Paige," I finished.

She didn't respond.

I jumped out of the window and flew to the place where I would die.