Chapter 13: The Sweet Escape

None of them were certain exactly how much time had passed. For all they knew, it could have been as little as ten minutes or as much as ten hours since they had been locked into the boiler room. As grim as the situation was, the upside to being left there by themselves was being allowed some time to attempt to get themselves together.

Matt and Inez were doing what they could do help Digit with his injured wing. Thankfully Matt always had a small emergency kit in his trusty red backpack, and he had been able to bandage the wing a bit. It had been a tricky process though, given how sensitive the bird's wing had become. They all had a strong suspicion that it had been broken, and they would need to get him some better treatment as soon as they could, if possible.

Fern and Delete were slumped against the wall nearby. They had both cried themselves out and were quietly reflecting on the situation they had been thrust into. Delete felt stupid for bringing them down to the boiler room in the first place. Once Digit had informed him of where he predicted the booster battery might be, Delete had felt like an idiot for not realizing it. He had no doubts that it was entirely his fault they were all stuck here now, not knowing for certain what would happen next.

Fern, meanwhile, felt like she was reliving an awful nightmare. Here she was, trapped on the same ship she had been held prisoner on the previous night. Logically speaking, it was largely better this time around, at least. She wasn't tied up or gagged, and she at least had her new friends to keep her company. She wanted so badly for Becky to be there with her though, as selfish as she knew the desire was. She would have felt so much safer with her by her side.

Lastly, Jackie was fervently pacing around the room, her mind racing to try and come up with a plan to get them out of there, though so far she had had no luck in doing so. The door was too strong to try and break down, there were no windows, no one else on the ship would help them escape, and Becky was miles away and had no idea they'd been caught.

"Come on, guys! There has to be a way to get out of here! We just have to think!" Jackie said hopefully. "We can't give up now!"

"Jackie's right," Inez agreed, standing up herself. "Sometimes there are solutions to problems hidden in plain sight."

"Like what?" Digit asked sarcastically. "A closet full of cleaning supplies? I'm not sure, Eartlies…"

"Rrgh!" Jackie grunted, whacking her forehead with her fist. "I don't know either, Didge! But I'm not about to let Hacker take over the Earth!"

"I hardly need your permission to do that," a voice replied unexpectedly. Everyone gasped in surprise, and those that had been sitting jumped and got to their feet upon being startled. Turning towards the door, they saw Hacker standing there, shutting the door and locking it behind him before walking further into the room. "So nice to have you all here together, kiddies. It's almost like a little party," he observed with fiendish delight. "And it's quite nice to see you again, missy," he added, spotting Fern near one of the cold walls.

Fern yelped with fright, backing flat against the wall in an attempt to get further away from the odious man she had grown rather shamefully afraid of.

The others stepped towards Hacker, in between him and Fern. "Leave her alone, Hacker!" Matt ordered with a contempt-filled sneer.

"Yeah, you've done enough to her already!" Inez added.

"Not that we should expect much in the way of decency from you, but it still blows my mind you were actually ready to kill her!" Digit spoke up shrilly.

"What can I say? To make an omelette, you have to be ready to break a few eggs," Hacker stated nonchalantly. He then caught sight of Delete specifically, standing with them with a cold grimace on his face. Hacker put on an obviously fake display of sadness and said, "Oh, Delete… Words can't express how upset it makes me to know you've abandoned me, especially when we're so close to victory."

Delete's frown deepened as he replied, "Come on, b… I mean, Hacker - You think I've forgotten all the times you've verbally abused me and Buzzy? All the times you've been perfectly willing to get rid of us without a second thought? Neither of us ever meant much of anything to you."

Hacker pretended to feel a sharp pain in his chest upon hearing these words, and acted dramatically in accordance with it. "Ugh! Delete, my old friend, you're breaking my heart… If all that is true, why have you stayed with me all this time anyway, hmm? Why is it today that you finally choose to break off from our wonderful little partnership?"

"I guess sometimes it takes something really big to make you think twice about things," Delete replied, stepping forward and poking Hacker's chest with his finger as he went on. "Something like realizing you'd be willing to torture and kill and innocent girl if it meant you got to take over the world and make someone else's life miserable!"

"Torture?!" the Cybersquad members shrieked, appalled to hear this revelation. No wonder Delete hadn't wanted to say what he'd heard. Fern, meanwhile, remained back against the wall. As she heard this, her breath caught in her throat and she went pale, feeling as if she was going to faint.

Hacker barely noticed as he replied, pushing Delete back away from him. "Hmm… I suppose you must have overheard Buzz and I talking. Yes I did, in fact, say I would. I'd do it several times over if that's what it took!" Glancing back down at Delete, he growled, "Don't come crawling back to me when you realize the mistake you've made." He then looked over the robot's shoulder and met Fern's eyes. "And YOU, young lady, should consider yourself lucky that what I originally had planned for you won't be necessary anymore," he spat in her direction. Fern could practically feel herself shrinking to the size of a mouse as he stared her down.

"Geez, Hacker... That's low, even for you!" Matt said icily.

"Consider this a lesson, then," Hacker said, bringing his face closer to Matt, who remained steady in his place. "Never. Underestimate. The. Hacker."

"What are you even doing here?" Inez asked sharply. "Did you just come to gloat?"

"Largely, yes," Hacker answered calmly, nodding. "I also came to apologize - It's a shame you won't be able to have a front row seat to watch as I attack your little town and defeat WordGirl. But I suppose that's simply the price you pay when you mess with The Hacker." He then turned and began walking back towards the door, unlocking it and stepping into the hallway. Before closing it again, he poked his head back in. "I'll deal with you all once I have your planet bowing at my feet."

It was only when Hacker left and slammed the door that Fern collapsed back onto the floor, her legs feeling as though they had turned to jelly from how much she had been shaking, especially near the end. She buried her face in her legs as she held them closer to herself, curling into a ball as a fresh batch of tears fell from her eyes and her sobbing began anew. Everyone rushed over to her and sat around her in a small semicircle.

Matt gingerly rubbed her shoulder as she cried. "It's okay, Fern. He's gone. You're safe."

Everyone else remained morosely silent. The situation appeared to be even more hopeless than ever. As much as they may not have been ready to completely give up just yet, they would have been lying if they'd said they weren't at least considering the ramifications of choosing to do so.

"I wish Hacker would just get here already," Becky remarked to her sidekick. The two of them were seated on the roof of one of the many tall buildings downtown. It had been over an hour since they'd begun waiting there, looking for any sign of the Grim Wreaker.

Huggy turned and squeaked, looking up at Becky.

"I don't know… Maybe they stopped him already. If they did, that'd be fantastic," Becky answered. "But I'm not going to get my hopes up. It sounds like that booster battery thing could be anywhere on that ship. It could take forever for them to find."

Huggy whined concernedly.

"Well gee, I HOPE they haven't been captured," Becky said, not enjoying picturing such a situation. "It'll be a lot harder to take Hacker down without them helping from inside."

The two remained silent as they watched the treeline in the distance, set against a clear morning sky, which was slowly turning from pink and orange to a delicate shade of blue. She could feel a light breeze on her back, blowing her cape around in the otherwise pleasantly warm air. If this was any other October morning, Becky likely would have been enjoying it, as most other people in town likely were, having no idea what would be coming soon.

"I'm worried, Huggy," Becky finally spoke up, continuing to gaze straight ahead. "I want to believe so badly that Fern can handle herself. She has the Cybersquad with her, and she's smart. I have a lot of confidence in her, I really do… but I still can't help but worry about her. What if something goes wrong? What if Hacker catches them? She hasn't been fighting Hacker for a long time the way the others have. Will she even be able to defend herself if he manages to get to her again?

"And what about Delete?" she continued. "Can we even really trust him? Sure, he seems genuine and all, and he did save Fern, so I want to trust him. But there's always a chance that he's actually still working for Hacker and is just trying to get us to trust him so he can turn around and stab them in the back… Ugh, my head hurts," she moaned, rubbing one of her temples.

Huggy placed his hand on Becky's back and rubbed it comfortingly.

Becky smiled. "Thanks, Huggy," she said gratefully. "I should probably quit worrying so much. I mean, it's eight against two here! They're way outnumbered! And I have super strength and super speed! What does he have? A ship? Lasers, maybe? We can totally take him!"

Huggy nodded and squeaked confidently, glad to see Becky perking up a bit.

"Right! We just have to remain confident! We just have to-"

"HEEEEEELP!" a loud yell suddenly interrupted Becky as she was speaking. Within moments she had a good guess who it might be. Startled, she glanced over the side of the building and had her assumption proven right upon spotting the same man calling for help as usual.

"Oh look, it's the town crier," Becky remarked dryly, picking up Huggy and flying down to the sidewalk with him, landing on her feet in front of the man. "What appears to be the trouble, good citizen?" she asked.

"WordGirl! Thank goodness it's you! There's a giant, scary-looking green and black spaceship thing approaching the city!" he hollered, pointing towards the sky.

Becky looked up towards the horizon and saw what a large part of her had been hoping not to see. There was the Grim Wreaker, slowly coming towards them. Becky felt her heart skip a beat, but she remained composed and took a deep breath. She re-ascended into the air, as Huggy held onto her. "Alright, Hacker…" she said assertively under her breath, "...bring it on."

Everyone in the boiler room jolted in surprise upon unexpectedly feeling the Wreaker start up and begin to lift up into the air. If they managed to somehow get out of there, they knew that flying off the ground while moving forward would only make it harder to get to the battery, especially considering where they were now quite confident it was located.

Matt, Jackie and Inez had all assumed their typical thinking positions. Matt was standing against the wall, keeping one foot propped against it as he fiddled with his yo-yo. Jackie was pacing around aimlessly, mumbling to herself as her mind scrambled for a solution to their problem. Lastly, Inez was sitting on her head against another wall.

Fern and Delete sat against the wall not far from Matt, each with one their arms wrapped around the other's back. Digit remained seated as well, taking care not to move his broken wing.

"I've never seen Buzzy so mad before," Delete remarked sadly, breaking the silence that had been set in for the past several minutes.

"Me neither," Matt agreed. "I guess we owe you a bit of an apology, Delete. Looks like you were telling the truth after all."

Delete shook his head. "Don't be sorry. I would've had a hard time believing me too."

"At least we know for sure we can trust you now," Inez said, looking on the bright side of things.

"Sorry we accused you of leading us to the wrong place on purpose," Jackie apologized self-consciously.

Digit cleared his throat and nodded. "Yeah, maybe that was unfair of us, assuming you were helping us under false pretenses…"

"It's okay guys, really," Delete assured. "I don't blame ya for being skeptical."

"What are we gonna do?" Fern spoke up, her voice heavy with despair, rubbing her puffy red eyes. "How are we ever gonna get out of here now?"

"Don't worry, Fern. We'll think of something," Matt replied. "Where there's a will, there's a way."

"But the door's locked, and there's no way we'll be able to break through it!" Fern argued. "What are we supposed to do, dig through the floor with a spoon? It's hopeless!"

As Fern finished speaking, Delete gasped and straightened up, snapping his fingers. "The floor! That's it!" he cried, standing up and letting go of Fern.

"Delete, I… I wasn't being serious," Fern objected meekly.

"That's not what I meant! Everyone, over here!" he called. "And someone grab the broom or the mop!"

The kids and Digit followed him to the spot in the room where he now stood. Inez was the last to arrive, holding up the broom and handing it towards him. "What do you need this for, Delete?" she asked with hopeful curiosity.

"To reach with!... Hmm… Matt, actually, you're the tallest. You try," he suggested.

Matt shrugged and took the broom as Delete looked up at the ceiling. He looked carefully and meticulously before pointing towards one particular metal tile. "Right there! Reach the end of the broom up and poke that tile!"

Matt gave a puzzled frown but did as Delete asked. It was a close shave, but he was able to reach it. He poked at it a few times with increasing pressure and, to their amazement, it came loose.

"Yes! Yes! I knew it! Ha ha!" Delete exclaimed joyfully, grabbing Fern's hands and dancing around with her for a few seconds, but she barely seemed to notice due to her total shock.

"Whoa! Delete, how did you know that would happen?" Jackie asked with amazement.

"Awhile back, Buzzy and I were doing some repairs on the floor right above us," Delete explained, letting go of Fern. "I was standing on the ladder and holding a bucket of nuts and bolts, and I lost my balance. I must have weighed more because of the bucket, because I fell through the floor right there! And we never fixed it properly, so it's still loose!"

"Well thank goodness! I'm really glad you remembered that, Delete!" Inez said with relief, everyone else uttering words of agreement from around them. She looked up and examined the hole left from where the panel had been. "It looks kinda small though… Do you guys think we'll be able to fit?"

Matt observed the hole and squinted, trying to get a sense of how wide it was. "I'm not sure, honestly. It looks like it'll be close though."

"I would suggest Digit should try to get through it, but I'd rather not risk him injuring his wing any more. And it'd be hard to get the battery out with one hand," Inez remarked.

Digit sighed, feeling useless being incapacitated.

Matt squatted down and patted their friend's shoulder. "It's okay, Didge. We'll just try to get the next smallest one of us through there."

Everyone glanced around upon hearing this, before their eyes all settled on Fern. She stiffened up upon realizing this and fretted, "Wait, what, me?! Don't tell me I have to go through there!"

"But Fern, you're the smallest aside from Digit! And time is of the essence! It's imperative that SOMEONE gets to the battery and removes it! There's no point wasting time and energy trying to get Matt or Jackie through first if it just turns out they won't fit! We're really sorry, but you're gonna have to be the one to do this!" Inez declared.

"But, but I… But I…. but…" Fern stuttered, looking back and forth at everyone. She felt like she was the last one of them who should be doing this. And the thought of being on the outside of the ship while it flew around high in the air nearly petrified her.

"It's okay, Fern. We'll help you as best as we can while we try to get out ourselves," Matt promised. "Here, take my skwak pad," he directed, handing it to Fern. "Take this and just go back the way we came, through the top of the ship. You'll have to look around a bit for the panel, but once you do, get it open and take out the battery. If you need help with anything, just press this button and one of us will answer you. You can also push it if one of us calls you, too."

"Here," Digit said, reaching into his chest hatch and pulling out a screwdriver, handing it to Fern. "You'll need this to unscrew it from its place. The battery is also a bit heavy, so be prepared for that."

Fern glanced between the two items in her hands. This was so much information to have to absorb in a matter of seconds. "But when I take it out the ship will start to fall, right? Wh-what do I do when that happens?!"

"Hmm, good point," Digit replied, reaching back into his chest once more. "Ooh! Yes! Voila!" he exclaimed, holding up a parachute. "Slip this on. When you have the battery, just pull this cord here and jump as far from the ship as you can."

It was apparent how visibly shaken Fern was by the prospect of having to do all this. She hadn't expected to have so much weight on her shoulders during this whole endeavor. "Guys, I… I know I said I wanted to help, but I don't know if I can do this!" she bemoaned regretfully.

Matt smiled reassuringly and wrapped an arm around her. "Look, we hate having to ask so much of you, especially considering how new you are to this. We wouldn't ask you to do it if we didn't think we had to."

"Of course not," Jackie agreed, putting her own arm around her. "But look at it this way: If you can do this, you'll be a hero! Just like Becky!"

Jackie's statement hit Fern like a wave. She looked back on the conversation she'd had with Becky a couple weeks prior. It made so much more sense to her now. Becky had been right all along - She COULD be a hero!

Fern breathed deeply, trying to clear her head, before putting on the first smile they had seen from her in awhile. "You're right..." she replied, looking up at the hole in the ceiling. "...I'll do it."

Matt patted her firmly on the back. "That's the spirit! Come on, we'll give you a boost." He went and stood under the hole, placing his hands together at leg level. This allowed Fern to step into his grasp, and he lifted her up to the hole by her foot. Luckily this was enough height for her to reach the ceiling. They realized she couldn't squeeze through it while wearing the parachute pack though, so they had to take it off of her and try again. This time they were finally successful, though it was still a tight squeeze for her to get through. Once she'd pulled herself up and onto the upper floor, she sat there on her knees and sighed heavily with relief. "Oh thank god!" she huffed, thankful to be out of there.

She looked back down into the hole, and everyone else was cheering for her. "Way to go, Fern!"

"Yeah, good going!"

"Nice job, kid!"

Fern giggled, appreciating the gestures. "Thanks, guys!"

Delete grabbed the parachute, screwdriver and skwak pad before stepping into Matt's hand and being lifted to the hole, where he handed it all off to Fern. "There you go!" he said.

Thankful for the help, Fern buckled the parachute onto herself over her sweater once more and grabbed the screwdriver and skwak pad.

"Think you'll be okay?" Delete asked before she had the chance to stand up.

Fern smiled. "I'll be alright, Delete. What about you guys? I don't want to leave you behind…"

"We'll be fine," Delete assured. "We'll keep trying to get through this hole, and we'll call if there's a problem. You just worry about getting to that battery. You can do it, Fern. I'm sure you can."

Ferm beamed and hugged Delete, greatly appreciative of his faith in her. "Thank you, Delete. I won't let you down, I swear."

"I know ya won't," Delete replied. "Show Hacker who's REALLY the boss."

"Guys? Can we finish this up? Delete is heavy!" Matt called out from below.

"Sorry, Matt!" Fern apologized, standing up as Delete was brought back down, and everyone called up to her.

"Good luck, Fern!"

"Remember what we told you!"

"We'll catch up as soon as we can!"

"Thanks, guys! See you soon!" Fern replied, turning to leave and making her way towards where she believed the stairs were. Okay, Fern, she thought, pep talking herself as she ran. Time to quit being scared. Becky, your friends, your parents, the planet - They're all counting on you. It's time to be the hero Becky says she knows you can be.