| |
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
 |
Artemis Fowl: The Penny Bridge
01.17.08, 21:34:05
|
|
|
|
Post #1 (permalink) |
|
|
| |
|
|
lol another quality fan fiction for those of you who like the Artemis Fowl series. So far,I've only met one other fan... so all you closet Arty lovers need to come out, please, thanks. And yes, I am aware of some of the historical errors. If you happen to know what year the automobile was invented and how it was in the 1930's I would love to fix that for ya. If you don't know... I guess it doesn't matter because you don't know the difference, right? one chapter, and then when I some comments,the second. Working on the third, but my priority is to get it posted on AFC first.
PS SPOILERS FOR EVERY SINGLE BOOK AHEAD
Artemis Fowl: The Penny Bridge
an Artemis Fowl fan fiction by Chitiliti
Chapter One: Now You See Him...
Artemis Fowl looked at the computer screen and wondered how he'd gotten himself into this mess. He was looking at something that seemed almost like a replay of he events that had taken place at Fowl Manor, a few years back, when he'd kidnapped Holly. And he knew how that had turned out. Speaking of Holly....
"Artemis! Can't you do something? Where's Foaly? What's going on?" These questions came in rapid sucession in Artemis's earpiece. Artemis typed a command into the computer and spoke into the microphone hanging next to his mouth. "I'm sorry Captain Short. I can't do anything to help at the moment. Our horsey friend is trying to solve our problem. And, no, I'm not quite sure what's going on, Holly." Artemis glanced over his shoulder. Holly scoffed in his ear. "Artemis Fowl, not knowing what's going on? Fat chance," she chuckled. Artemis shrugged. "Believe what you will, Captain."
The centaur was up to his neck in multicolored wires. He was looking for a loose connection. Something. Anything. "It wasn't supposed to break up for another hour. D'arvit! The commander will have my hooves if this mission falls apart," he moaned. Artemis shook his head. The situation was dire. Holly, inside the hallways of the humble middle-class home of Marcus and Daisy Japonika, rolled her eyes. "I doubt Trouble will hurt your hooves, Foaly. But we will all be angry if something doesn't happen soon. What's going on?" Holly asked again. She was beginning to feel nervous.
Their situation started out as a somewhat routine misson. Most of the LEPrecon squad was gone that day to a conference in Atlantis. Holly was on loan from Section 8, as was Foaly, due to the lack of workers. Neither of them was happy about it, and Lord knows Commander Kelp was not happy. Only in his position for three months and already things were going nuts. Holly's misson had been simple. Track down a rogue gnome on the run from the law for spice smuggling. Simple. Until the gnome broke into a human home, and took the humans hostage a gun point. And not a laser gun either. A human gun with human bullets that had been illegally imported from America. Just more charges against the gnome. The gnome's name was Manny Spruce. He had been arrested many times before on smaller charges. He had apparently been planning this run for a while, considering he had voluntarily forfieted his magic.
So, when the hostages were taken, they needed more help. Holly contacted Artemis Fowl as quickly as she could, and he was there within a few hours. They'd set up a time-stop and sent their finest fairies in. Most of them were dead now, killed by human bullets. There were two left. Holly and, suprisingly, Grub Kelp. Grub was keeping his mouth shut since Holly had pointed her Neutrino 3000 at his mouth when he had kept balbbering about his mommy. Trouble had laughed gently and thanked her. But now the time stop was unravelling before it's time and Manny Spruce was making his requests. He would keep the humans and the last two faires alive, and allow the humans to be mind wiped, in return for total amnesty. He made these requests to Commander Kelp over Grub's helment. Grub had gladly given it up when Manny pointed the gun at him. Now, he and Holly were taking cover in a cupboard, while Manny and his hostages were in the den across the hall. Holly peeked out of the cupboard. The humans were sitting tied up on a couch. Manny was standing on the couch between them, pointing the gun at the kitchen where Holly and Grub were hiding. Holly quickly withdrew her head and turned to Grub. "What's going on?" she asked one more time into her microphone.
Artemis pursed his lips. "Well, Captain. It seems that the time stop in undoing itself," he said. Holly moaned. "Great. Is there anything going for us?" she asked. Artemis shook his head. "Things are not looking good for us Holly. Commander Kelp is actually considering pulling you two out and blue-rinsing the house," Artemis answered gravely. Holly gasped. "But the humans! They'll..." "I know. And so does the commander. That is what is keeping him from making a decision."
Holly leaned back against a rack in the pantry. She thought for a second and then said "What are his requests?" Artemis stared at the computer screen. There was a document on the page with all of his notes on the situation, including Spruce's requests. "Total amnesty for the humans, you and Grub"
"That doesn't seem fair," said Holly, pouting a little. Grub pestered her for details. "What's not fair, Captain?" he asked. Holly ignored him. "Heh. Doesn't he want gold?" asked Holly, sarcasm never failing her even in dire situations. Artemis rolled his eyes. "Very funny, Captain. Okay, now listen to me. Spruce knocked communications out between us and the commander. I don't know why, but I'm going to do a little computer magic and try to get them back online," said Artemis, clearing up another problem that had occured earlier. "Oh, good," said Holly. "I was wondering why I couldn't hear Trouble anymore. Magic away, Fowl. Keep us updated."
Grub was still pestering Holly. "You haven't been able to hear Trub? What requests is that gnome making? What about the humans? What's not fair? What's going on Holly? Where's Trub? Where's Mommy!?" he asked in rapid succession. Holly jammed the butt of her Neutrino in Grub's leg. "Shut up, Kelp," she said. "You want me to shut up, Captain? But we just got out communications back online," said the elder Kelp over Holly's headset. Holly blushed inside her helmet. "I didn't mean you, Trouble. I was talking to Grub. Can we get another helmet in here for him so he will know what's going on?"
Trouble thought. "Hey, Fowl. Ask that gnome if Grub can go and get Major Meadows' helmet," he asked. Major Meadows was one of the dead fairies. Holly was absolutely heart broken when she head he was down. He had a little girl named Ruby and a wife at home. They were no doubt watching the news. Holly wondered if the families had been contacted about the deaths. She pushed the depressing thoughts to the back of her mind, trying to keep it clear so she could deal with the situation at hand.
Artemis spoke clearly into the microphone. "Excuse me, Mister, eh, Spruce. May I call you Manny?" Spruce lowered the gun. "Are we ready to negotiate yet, Commander? And sure, you can call me Manny. My friends call me Manny, and I have a feeling we are going to be good friends after you give me what I want," he said. "This is not the commander, Manny. My name is Artemis Fowl and I need to ask you a small question. You cooperate with us, we cooperate with you."
"Artemis Fowl? The Artemis Fowl? I know you. You were actually my inspiration for this entire plan," said Manny. Artemis bit his lip. "Anyway, what this small question?" asked Spruce. "You seem to have taken the helmet of one of our people. And, in order to give you what you want, we need all of our forces connected, do you get what I'm saying?" "Yes." "The commander would like to know if Corporal Kelp can retrieve one of the helmets from one of the...dead...fairies," asked Artemis, stumbling over the word dead. It was hard to believe so many had died while he was helping. He felt somewhat guilty.
Spruce thought for a moment and then smiled. "Sure, why not? As long as it helps me get what I want." Artemis blew out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. Trouble came back inside the moblie headquaters where Artemis and Foaly were trying to fix things. He slammed the comlink on desk and growled. "Grub go get one of those helmets and quit bothering Captain Short," he barked into Holly's ear. Holly passed the news along. Grub puffed out his chest, putting on a mask of bravery for all that watched. Holly rolled her eyes again. "Cover me," he said, his voice deeper than it was supposed to be. Holly pointed the gun at the door. "Consider yourself covered. Go, Corporal," she said. Grub crawled out of the pantry and Holly covered him, pointing her Neutrino at Spruce. Spruce stared at her, and it made Holly feel very uncomfortable. She thought about closing her visor and blocking him out completely, but then decided it wasn't a good idea. She needed to keep Spruce in sight.
Back in the mobile ops, Artemis was watching the action through Holly's eyes. "Good job, Captain. Just keep it up," he said. Foaly was still frantically searching for the problem. "I just don't see what the problem could be," he said, defeatedly. "I check the equipment twice a week. It's the best equipment, of course. I made it."
Artemis and Trouble looked at each other. Trouble smirked. "Foaly, this isn't the time for gloating. Just find the problem, fix it, and get Grub and Holly out of there," Trouble said, sitting in a chair and propping his boots on the desk. Artemis squirmed uncomfortably in the fairy sized chair. "Do you have a bigger chair? I'm not as small as I used to be."
Back in the house, Grub was picking his way to Major Meadows. Holly was still covering him, but so was Spruce. Spruce was pointing his gun at Grub. Holly was still feeling nervous, but it was more than nerves. She had felt like this before. Like when Commander Root died. Holly's breath caught in her throat. It still hurt.
Grub found Major Meadows and pryed the helmet off his head. Holly closed her eyes, not wanting to see Meadows' face. Grub slipped the helmet over his head and closed the visor. He began his run back to the cover of the pantry. Holly looked straight at Spruce, who was actually smiled. Holly felt uneasy. Grub was breathing hard.
Something was going to happen. Holly just knew it. Something about the way Spruce was smiling. Spruce was pointing his gun at Grub's back. Artemis, Foaly and Trouble were watching the screen. Foaly was still tangled in wires. Artemis pulled up Grub's POV. He was almost to the hallway, and then it was a few more steps until the safety of the cupboard. Just a few more steps.
Holly noticed it first. Spruce was tightening his finger around the trigger. Then Artemis noticed. "Commander Kelp, look. I think he is going to try and shoot Grub," Artemis yelled. Trouble leapt out of his chair and smack his fists against the desk. "Captain Short! Do something!" Trouble yelled. Holly looked at Grub, then Spruce, then her own hands where her Neutrino sat.
She spent too long thinking. Spruce pulled the trigger. Holly yelled "No!" and shot Spruce in the chest with a high level charge. It all happened it a split second. "D'arvit!" yelled Trouble. Artemis slammed his fist against the keyboard and pulled up Grub's vitals. Foaly tried to untangle himself and run to the control panel. "Holly? Holly! What's going on?"
Holly was up and running. "You stupid moron! Why did you shoot him?" she screamed. Spruce laughed. "You weren't specific with your requests. Let this be a lesson to you, LEP," he chuckled. Holly grabbed Grub by the arm and heaved, running and dragging him back to the cupboard. "D'arvit, Grub. If only you had just stopped bothering me, we wouldn't had have to get you a stupid helmet, and you wouldn't get shot. Are you dead, Grub? D'arvit," she mumbled. She felt horribly guilty. They reached the cupboard and Holly sat down on the floor, cradling Grub's head in her lap. He was still breathing, but Holly had a feeling he wouldn't be for long. Holly slipped Grub's helmet off. "Artemis," she said. She didn't know what to say. "I'm working on it Holly. Grub is very unstable. He was shot in the back, correct?"
Holly flipped Grub over. The green fabric of his jumpsuit was stained with red. "Yeah. The back. Oh, gods. Why isn't he healing? I just realized! He's not healing!" screamed Holly. Artemis's heart raced. This was getting stranger. "Commander Kelp, when was the last time your brother preformed the Ritual?" he asked. Trouble racked his brain. "Ah.... a few months? I don't know. He doesn't tell me these things!" said Trouble. Artemis glared at Trouble. Trouble crossed his arms. Foaly finally untangled himself and clopped over to the control panel. He pushed Artemis away and settled himself into his specially modified chair. "Okay. So Grub's not healing. He must of used up his magic sheilding or healing a wound he didn't know he had. Holly, you still have about three quaters of your magic. Grub is still alive, so you heal him. Hurry, Holly," he said, instantly taking control.
Holly put her slender hands on Grub's back. "Heal," she breathed. She closed her eyes and pushed the magic out through her fingers. The tiny blue sparks targeted the hole in Grub's back. They healed him quickly, but not without the thrashing and spasming that went along with it. Trouble breathed a sigh of relief. Grub was going to be okay. Foaly was tapping away at the keyboard. "Still trying to figure out why the time-stop is unravelling. It only has about five minutes before it's gone all together. We have to fix this before then. Commander? What do you say?"
Trouble rubbed his chin. "I don't know, Foaly. I have no clue. Captain Short?" "I don't know either. My instincts are just telling me to fill his requests and deal with him later. Artemis?" "I...don't know. Holly's plan seems to be the best course of action."
Trouble nodded. "Okay, it's decided. Foaly, get in contact with the Council and see what we can do. Captain Short, mantain cover until I give the word, and please take care of Grub. Artemis....sit there and look important."
Foaly picked up com-link and put a line through to the Council. Holly closed the doors of the cupboard and sat Grub up against a sack of potatoes. He groaned, coming out of the shot-in-the-back and healing induce stupor. "Ugh....where am I? Mommy? Is that you?" he groaned, slapping himself on the forehead to try and clear his thoughts. Of course, that never works and it was funny to se Grub slap himself while at the same time try to get a hold on his motor functions. Holly couldn't help but laugh everytime Grub missed. "I think you are going to be alright, Corporal. And, I'm not your mommy," she chuckled, slapping Grub on the shoulder.
Artemis sat in his chair, arms crossed. "Can't I do something?" he asked. "Why did you bring me in if you were just going to make me sit in an undersized chair and watch as one of my best friends sits in a cupboard , in danger?" "We didn't bring you in," pointed out Trouble, glaring at Artemis through intense brown eyes. Artemis glared back with his own brand of intensity. "Holly did. I would've rather had someone qualified to help us."
Artemis laughed, spitefully. "Not qualified? All right. Fine. Next time your entire civilization needs saving, you may ask someone else more qualified to help you." Trouble wilted. The mud boy had a point. Trouble turned his back to Artemis, paying attention to the situation with the Council. Foaly had a peculiar look on his face. Something between frustration and amusement. "But, Cahartez, sir. If we don't give this gnome what he wants, he is going to kill Captain Short, Corporal Kelp and the two human hostages. That would make eight dead, sir. I propose that we-" "Headset off, Foaly. We don't want Spruce to know our plans."
Foaly stopped, balanced the phone on his shoulder and ripped the headset off of his head. In the den, Spruce swore. Foaly continued. "I propose that we give Spruce what he wants, then decide we want it back. We give him the amnesty, get Captain Short and Corporal Kelp out, mind wipe the two humans and go home. Then, we wait a few weeks or so and send in a Retrieval team to bring him in. It shouldn't be that hard, and, if we get tricked into another situation similar to this one, I should at least by then have the time-stop towers working again."
On the other side of the com-link, Cahartez and the rest of the Council thought. It was tricky, very tricky. "You say the time stop towers aren't working, Foaly?" asked Cahartez. Back in the mobile ops unit, Foaly winced. "Um, sort of sir. They aren't exactly not working. They are more just temporairly unusable."
The council laughed. "How eloquent, Mister Foaly. Give us an hour to deliberate and we will call you back," Cahartez said. Foaly whinnyed. "Not possible! The time stop is going to break up in three minutes. Spruce will more that likely kill one of our finest officers, Cahartez. And, two humans. Just give him the amnesty, D'arvit!"
"We must deliberate. Three minutes it is. We will call you back soon." Cahartez terminated the link. "No, wait! It doesn't work like that," yelled Foaly. He slammed the com-link on the desk. "I'll take that as a sign it didn't go well?" asked Artemis. Foaly shook his head. "They have to deliberate. Beauracratical idiots. Artemis, come help me. We have to try and fix the time-stop."
Foaly walked back into the mass of wires, and Artemis followed him. And while they were trying to beat the clock, Trouble took Foaly's spot at the control panel. "Holly, is everything all right in the cupboard?" he asked. "Everything is fine," Holly answered. "A little quiet and lonely with Grub out of commission, but we're fine." "Okay, good. I'll take your word for it," Trouble said. Behind him, there was a cry.
"Foaly! I think I know what our problem is," cried Artemis, standing up. He nearly hit his head on a shelf, but he raced over to the control panel and pushed Trouble out of the way. "Did you ever check the level of magic in the batteries? Maybe somebody drained them," said Artemis. Foaly followed him to the control panel, typed in a command and pulled up the menu for the magic cells. "D'arvit," cursed Foaly. "He's right. They're drained almost completely. If we could get a warlock up here in two minutes to charge them, we could buy some time. But there is no way. No way at all."
"Who could've drained them? Spruce couldn't have known about the time-stop in time. I smell a sabatoge, Mister Foaly, Commander Kelp," mused Artemis, steepling his fingers. Trouble shook his heaad. "Why would somebody sabatoge the time-stop cells? Why not sabatoge something else, something we are more likely to use? We hardly use the time-stop, except in emergency cases. Everybody knows that."
"Let me think, Commander. They were drained, we know that much. By who or what, or why, we do not know," said Artemis, sitting in a chair and resting his chin in thin hands. "Think fast, Fowl," urged Foaly. The com-link buzzed. Trouble answered it. "We have deliberated. We are telling you to pull out the officers and blue-rinse the house," said Cahartez. Trouble grimaced. "This is Commander Kelp, Councilman Cahartez. Spruce is monitering our communications. If we give the order to Captain Short to come back, Spruce will storm the cupboard where they are hiding and kill them. I strongly suggest we go with Foaly's plan."
"We cannot allow a criminal to get his way," argued Cahartez. "And I cannot allow my officers to be killed, Cahartez," argued Trouble. Cahartez sighed into the phone. "I'm sorry, Commander. A blue-rinse is the only way."
Trouble thought. "All right, fine. We'll do it your way," he said, and terminated the link. He sat the com-link on the desk and was silent. Foaly and Artemis looked at him.Trouble took his headset off and motioned for Artemis and Foaly to do the same."Okay, here's the plan. We are going to lie to Spruce and the Council." He replaced his headset. "Captain Short, are you there?" asked Trouble.
"Alive and breathing, but nervous, Commander," answered Holly. "What's the plan?" "We are giving Spruce what he wants," said Trouble. Holly was silent. "Are you sure?" "Positive. You're coming home, Holly," said Trouble. In the den, Spruce breathed a sigh of relief. He was going to leave here, free and alive. "Come on out, LEP," he yelled, tauntingly. Holly kept her position. "Tell me what do, Commander," she breathed. Trouble thought. "Spruce, can you hear me?" he said into the set. "Loud and clear, Commander," answered Spruce, plopping down onto the couch in between the stunned humans. The woman, Daisy, was wearing a pair of khaki pants and a stylish button up blouse. The man, Marcus, was also in khakis and a button up shirt. It was a sunday afternoon in the deep south of America, Louisana, and this middle aged couple had just gotten back from church when they discovered the little man in their bathroom, hiding behind the shower curtain. Holly thanked her lucky stars that Artemis had been in Texas a few hours previously, accompianing his father in a buisness venture. Artemis didn't like Texas, but his father was set on this particular venture. The company was run by a honorable, trusted and God-fearing man, so Artemis Sr. had no problem working with him.
"Spruce, listen to me. You win. You get your amnesty," started Trouble. Artemis smiled and said "For now, at least." Trouble glared at him, and Artemis pointed to his ear. "No mic. I'm safe," Artemis assured him. Trouble continued talking to Spruce. "You're free, Spruce. Now, leave. Go home. We will take care of everything else. Just leave our officers and the humans alone, and leave."
In the den, Spruce thought. "No strings attached, huh? You are just gonna let me go, huh? Okay...prove it. I want papers. A contract." Trouble wilted again. He removed the headset and looked at Foaly. "How much time do we have?" he asked. Foaly glanced at the screen of the computer. "One minute," he said, gravely. Artemis got up out of his chair and walked to the door. "What are you doing, Fowl?" asked Foaly, grabbing Artemis by his white Polo shirt. Artemis struggled against the centaur's grip. "I'm going to check on those cells. See if I can figure out what's wrong."
He pulled hard against Foaly's grip. Foaly released Artemis. "Be careful, Fowl. That is very sensitive equipment out there. Don't hurt it." "I appreciate your concern for my personal health, Foaly," said Artemis, bounding down the fairy-sized stairs in two steps. There were several of Foaly's apprentices running around in various stages of panic. He pushed them away and made his path to the magic cells. He found them and began tinkering around with the wires that connected them to the towers. There were no loose wires. Artemis thought. He had about forty-five seconds to fix the problem. He grabbed a wire. It was big and red and important looking. He wriggled it around and.....
The ground was hard and hot. He could hear voices and...music. He awakes.
"Hey, mister. What're you doin' laying on the ground like that, mister?" a small voice said. Artemis cracked one eye open. "You should prob'ly get outta the road, mister. One of those new-fangled horseless carriages is gonna run over you. Billy got hit by one of those last month. Broke 'is bird finger." Artemis closed and then opened both of his eyes. There was a shillouette in front of his eyes. Artemis sat up and looked around. He was sitting in the middle of a road. There was a little girl standing next to him, her brown hair plaited into braids. She was wearing a flowered dress and no shoes. "Where am I?" he asked, blinking. "New York City. Gee, your eyes sure is big," the little girl said. "Who are you?" asked Artemis. "I'm Penny DeMartino. I'm nine years old. What's your name?" the little girl said.
"I'm...Artemis. I'm 16,"he said, slowly, looking around. He'd been to New York City before. Twice actually. This didn't look anything like the New York he knew. It looked more like a scene out of a movie. Artemis picked himself up, dusted off his khakis and walked to the sidewalk. The little girl, Penny, followed him. "Sixteen," she repeated. "That's really old. My brother's sixteen. His name is Gideon. Do you have any brothers?"
Artemis looked at the little girl. She looked up at him, her eyes sparkling. But her face was dirty. "Ahh," said Artemis, thinking. Was this a movie set? Was this little girl an actress? "Yes. I have two younger brothers, but.... what is this?" "What's what?" asked the little girl, grabbing one of her own braids and nibbling the end of it. "How did I get on the set? Where's the director? Or someone in charge? Anyone?"
"Set?" asked Penny, slowly, dropping her now damp braid. "Yes, set... isn't this a movie set? Exquisite soundstage... must have taken years to complete," commented Artemis. Penny giggled. "You're funny. Movie, yeah, right. Like any of us will ever be in a movie," she laughed, twisting her braid around. Artemis blinked. Now, that didn't make sense. Any nine year old child actor wouldn't be afraid to announce she was in a movie. Unless...
"Where can I buy a newspaper?" asked Artemis, bending down to grasp Penny by the shoulders. Penny pointed behind him. Artemis left the little girl and rushed into a tiny little shop. A bell tinkled when he opened the door, and the shopkeeper looked over at him and smiled. "Good afternoon." he said. There was a stack of newspapers sitting on the counter. Artemis snatched one of them a little too quickly and the entire stack slid off the counter and onto the floor. The shopkeeper yelled something, angry that this stranger had messed up his nice, straight stack of newspapers. But Artemis didn't hear it.
Looking at the newspaper, Artemis knew one of four things was happening. One, he was dreaming. Maybe he'd been electrocuted back at the time stop towers... the time stop... he pushed that out of his mind for a moment and kept going through his options. Two, he was going crazy, which he doubted. Highly. Three, this really was a movie set and that little girl was either stupid, crazy or a brat. Artemis figured that was probably his best choice, but looking at the newspaper he knew it probably wasn't his choice.
Which left one more... there had been a malfunction at the time stop towers and Artemis really had been sent back in time... and the date on the newspaper, August 11, 1932, seemed to be right. He ripped the top page off the newspaper and folded it up as small as he could and shoved it in his pocket. Then, he ran out, neglecting to pay for the one page. The shopkeeper started to run after him, but sighed and stopped. Kids these days....
Artemis ran out of the shop and right past Penny. She said "Hey!" and started running after him. Artemis was running up the street and his mind was racing even faster. The farther he ran, the more it became evident this was not a movie set. No cameras, no sound equipment.... and as he turned corner after corner he knew movie sets weren't this big. He stopped, and leaned against a brick wall, panting. Penny caught up with him. She ran up to him as he dropped his hands to his knees and tried to calm his breathing. She bent down and looked at him, planting her hands on her hips. "Did you steal something, Artemis?" she asked. Artemis shook his head, not in answer to her question but more trying to tell himself this wasn't happening. But then, Penny reached over and took his hand. "Come on," she said. "I'm taking you home." As if we were some sort of puppy.
But Artemis went. Either way, dreaming, crazy or if this was really happening, he figured it wouldn't hurt. |
______________________________________
leaving for the summer. Will try and pop in everyonce in a while. It will only get worse once school starts, so go ahead and wrap your head around me not being here. Please don't PM while I'm gone. I hope I can clean the slate with you all before I leave. Um... I guess that's it. Have a happy and safe summer and God loves you!
|
|
|
|
|
|
Chapter Two: Now, you don't
Captain Holly Short slammed her pen down, shoved the paperwork she had just spent an hour completing into it's proper folder and slid her chair back. She frowned. She was tired, hungry... and skittish. She didn't know why she felt so nervous, she just did. She shook her head, as if that would work, and stood up, taking the folder with her.
At least all that with Spruce was done and over with. But there were still so many problems to work out. Like... where the heck was Artemis Fowl? She replayed the events of the days, though even thinking was making her sleepy, trying to understand why Artemis had just disspeared like that.
According to Foaly, while Holly was still hiding in the cupboard, Artemis had gone to check the power cells in the time stop. And he never came back. One of Foaly's assistants came back, however and started freaking out, screaming "He's gone! He's just gone! No flash, no nothin', he's just GONE!"
Foaly, in the meantime, had made a contract. A very fake contract, but a stupid criminal like Spruce wasn't going to know the difference, right? Well, at least, not until it no longer mattered and he was sitting in a jail cell. The time stop fell apart. Everyone started panicking, but Trouble opened up the door and yelled "QUIET!" and they were all quiet. He motioned for them to come over and then he told them all to go hide somewhere. This was unprecedented... a time stop had never falled apart like this before. Everyone went to go hide and Trouble shut the door, thinking.
Foaly was sending the contact via email to Spruce's stolen helmet. "Foaly..." said Trouble menacingly. "I'm working on it, Commander," Foaly answered. While the e-mail was sending, Foaly stopped to think. Okay, what was going on? Fowl was gone, disspeared. The time stop was gone, which meant Artemis hadn't fixed it, wherever he was, and now they had about fifty panicking fairies in broad daylight. This was going to take a stroke of genius...
<i>Which, luckily for them, I'm good at, </i> thought Foaly. <i>Okay, so the agenda... find Fowl, fix Spruce problem, mind wipe humans, calm everybody down, convince the Council not to fire me...okay, easy enough, let's go with it.</i> Spruce was talking in his earpiece now. "So, really, you're not kididng me, this is for real? I can just...leave?" he asked. Foaly sighed, but it sounded more like a whinny. "Yes, you can just leave. And please, do it now. Please," he said, tapping his hooves impatiently.
Spruce hopped down of the sofa and said "Uh, all right. I'm gone." He grinned and ran out. Foaly sighed. "Go ahead and get a Retrievel team on standby below ground, please," he told Trouble. "And as soon as Spruce hits the shafts, get a Recon to track him. Somebody stealthy. And fast. And good. Please, don't send me a rookie."
Trouble didn't even nod, he just started giving orders. Foaly smirked, and said "Okay, Holly, you're free. How's Grub doing?" "Eh, sleeping, actually. Send in a medic to get him and the... ah.. others, please," said Holly, stepping out of the cupboard after what seemed like an eternity. The two humans on the couch looked even more confused than before. Holly frowned. "Uh, what about the humans?" she asked Foaly.
"I'm sending in a mindwipe kit with the medics. Why don't you go untie them and calm them down, Captain?' "All right," said Holly. She walked towards then, trying not to look at her dead team. "My name's Holly," she told the humans, switching to English. "I'm going to untie you, okay?"
They nodded eagerly. Holly ungagged them first, and then untied their wirsts. They stared at her as she undid their ankles and then stepped back. "Everything is going to be just fine," she said, turning on the mesmer. "Why don't you leave this room and go somewhere else... but do not leave the house."
They nodded again and stood up, walking to another part of the house. The medics arrived and one of them handed Holly a mind wipe kit. She thanked him and for some reason, tears sprang to her eyes. She wiped them away and tried to swallow around the lump in her throat, following the humans. She didn't like for things to die on missions, but then again, who liked for things to die? Apparently, Manny Spruce did and Holly was filled with an intense hatred for him.
The humans were sitting on the bed in the bedroom. Holly set everything up and preformed the mindwipe. When she was done, she let them sleep and walked back out. She instructed someone, she wasn't really sure who, to clean everything up and then walked out side. She was just sort of floating and unattached. This was all too surreal.
She knocked on the door of the mobile ops unit where Foaly and Trouble were. Trouble opened the door, looking angry. Holly pushed him out of the way and walked inside, ripping off her helmet. She collapsed into a chair and almost started crying. "D'arvit, what's wrong with me?" she muttered, wiping her forearm across her eyes. She felt someone's hand on her shoulder. She looked up, a little surprised to see it was Trouble's hand. "There isn't anything wrong with you, Captain. This is normal, you know?"
"It's normal for me to want to cry like a little girl after every single mission I go on?' she spat, slapping her knee and looking away. Trouble was surprised. "Well, sure, I guess... but.... every mission? That is a little strange, you aren't usually like that." "Yeah, I know, Commander--" "You can call me Trouble right now. "Whatever. Yeah, I know it's weird. After every single mission I've been on in the past six months, I've gone home and just.... cried."
She blushed. "I can't believe I just told you that," she muttered. Trouble sighed. "You know, it really is okay. Holly, you've been working non-stop forever. You've been through a lot and I'm surprised you haven't had a nervous breakdown. It's okay if you feel upset sometimes after missions or whatever... especially years of supressing it."
Holly smiled a little. "Thank you, Dr. Kelp. Can I go home now?" she asked. Trouble shook his head. "Just stay here for a little while longer while everything gets wound down." Holly frowned, but Trouble patted her shoulder again. He got up and walked away, and Holly leaned back, stretching out her legs and tipping her head back. She decided to take a nap.
She slept for about ten minutes. She was exhausted and all she wanted to do was go home, have a nice long soak in the tub, have a cup of tea and sleep for a week. But then, Foaly woke her up. "You can leave now," he told her. He didn't look happy... in fact, he looked as far away from happy as possible. He looked worried. Before she could ask what was wrong, she noticed that Artemis was gone. "Did Fowl already go home?" asked Holly, sitting up but then resting her head in her hands. Foaly cleared his throat. "Actually, I need to talk to you about that. Right before the time stop broke up, Artemis went out to check the cells and didn't come back here. You didn't see him, did you? By any chance."
Holly scoffed "No," but her heart sunk. "Didn't one of your assistants or something see him? But then again, it's not like him to just...leave, at least not without out telling one of us first. Maybe... he has a plan or something. He can be kind of impulsive when he has a plan, you know that."
"Holly, you're rambling," droned Foaly over Holly's gradually getting more nervous voice. He grabbed Holly by the shoulders. "One of my assistants did see him... he saw him <i>dissapear</i>," he told her, bluntly. It didn't register in Holly's head, it was too fantastic. "What do you mean, dissapear?" muttered Holly. "He told me one minute, Artemis was standing there, messing about with some wires and the next minute, he was gone, vanished into thin air." "That's.. that's ridiculous!" said Holly. Foaly shrugged. "Whatever," he said. "Apparently, you don't know what happened to him, so therefore, you are useless. Which means I have to figure out what happened, alone. Again."
Holly stood up and announced. "I'm going home." But then Trouble walked in and it was like her worst nightmare. He handed her a folder and winced when she asked "What's this?" "It's...paperwork. Sorry, Captain, but you know the drill. It's mandatory. You can fill it out on the shuttle ride home if you want and just drop it off when you get below ground," he said. Holly grimaced. "Or, I can take it and shove it up Manny Spruce's--" "Holly, just go home, okay? Go home and get some rest, please." Holly smiled, dripping with sarcasm. "I can't rest, not yet. I have <i>paperwork</i>."
And now, Holly was done with her paperwork. Trouble was still in his office when Holly dropped it off. Actually, it was more like Holly throwing it on his desk and storming out with out so much as a "Good night" when she left. She went home and bypassed the bath, opting instead to fall asleep on her futon without even changing into pyjamas.
~
Artemis Fowl was being dragged along by a skinny nine year old girl up flights and flights and flights of stairs. Penny was bringing him to her home, which apparently was a tiny apartment on the very top floor. "It's easier going down," said Penny. Artemis could hardly catch his breath. "It's easier because Gideon taught me how to slide down the banisters," she added, with a giggle.
When they finally reached the apartment, Penny burst in with out knocking. She dropped Artemis's wrist and left him standing in the doorway as she ran through the house screaming "Mama! MAMA!" Penny dissapeared into another room, but a dark haired, tall boy appeared, peeking into the room from around the corner. He looked at him confused and then dissapeared again. Artemis still stood in the doorway, feeling awkward. <i>Maybe this wasn't such a great idea,</i> he said, turning to leave. But as he was leaving, someone yelled behind him. In Italian? He jumped, startled. He turned around and Penny was running towards him, her mother and the dark haired boy trailing behind her. Artemis cringed back, but Penny grabbed his wrist and jerked him inside, surprisingly strong for an underfed little girl.
Penny's mother was on him in an instant asking him questions. "What's your name?" "Where're you from?" "Are you hungry, tired?" And then she was asking Penny. "Penny, why did yout this boy home?" "Penny, why don't you have the millk I sent you for?" "Penny, why is your face dirty?"
And Penny was jumping around, hyperactive, trying to answer he rmother's questions. "His name is Artemis, he's from somewhere, I dunno, Mama...Mama, he was in the street, I thought he was homeless and I don't have the milk because I forgot and my face is dity because I was playing with Billy and he pushed me in a puddle." She said this all in one breath and then bent over, panting. She looked up and her mother and grinned.
The dark haired boy stared at Artemis meancingly. He leaned against the wall with his arms crossed. Penny's mother looked at Artemis. "Well, then, you are staying for dinner." It wasn't a question. She looked over at the dark haired boy and said "Gideon, go get the milk because your sister can't seem to remember anything these days. Penny, go get washed up please. And, Artemis, our guest, please, make yourself at home." Gideon took the money his sister held out and stormed out of the door. Penny ran off to another part of the house, presumably to wash her face. Mrs. DeMartino walked off, presumably to go do mother-like things.
And Artemis was left alone. He saw a chair. He went and sat in it, trying to figure this all out. So, he really had traveled back in time. Intriguing. But how was he supposed to get back? His thoughts turned to what he had been doing before being sucked back to Depression-era New York City. The situation in Louisiana with Spruce. He hoped everything turned out all right. He sat there and thought for a long time, it was a lot to take in. He sat there with his chin in his hand until Gideon walked in, back from the shop, milk in hand.
For some reason, Gideon seemed to have a problem with Artemis. He glared at him for a moment as he walked in and then stormed past, the door slamming behind him, and on into the kitchen. Artemis watched after him, surprised, and frankly, appalled. He was used to people not liking him, but he wasn't used to be people being so open about it as to slam doors.
In the kitchen, Gideon finally spoke. It was in Italian, though, so Artemis only caught a few words. There was an arguement going on, and Gideon wasn't happy. Mrs. DeMartino argued back, also in Italian, and then Gideon stumbled out, slapping away a wooden spoon that his mother was using to shoo him out with. Gideon rubbed the back of his neck and asked "Where's Penny?"
As if by magic, the little girl sped out... and she was singing. Now, it's not unusual for little girls to sing, but Penny's voice... Artemis was shocked to hear the voice. It was so big to be coming out of so little a girl. Gideon grabbed Penny by the back of her dress and hauled her back, cutting off her song with a choking noise. He asked her something in Italian. Artemis figured it was about him, because Gideon glared at him again.
Penny shurgged and started rambling in Italian as well. Gideon ignored her rambling and walked off to another part of the house. Penny's rambling trailed off and she looked over at Artemis. "My brother doesn't like you," she announced, running over to sit in the only other rickety kitchen chair. "He doesn't like you because he says we don't have enough money to feed ourselves, much less a 'crazy stranger'."
Artemis swallowed. "Penny," he said slowly. "What does he mean by 'crazy'?" "He doesn't believe me when I say you're not...from here." "What does that mean?" Artemis was beginning to get worried. Penny looked up at him with a smile. "You're from somewhere else, aren't you? Like... well, like in Gideon's books! A time traveler. You don't talk like you're from here and you certainly don't dress like. I've never quite seen clothes like your's before."
Penny hopped up and down in her chair. "I told Gideon you were a time traveller." |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Chapter Three: The Lotus House of Strange Wonders
"Penny. Why did you tell him that?" asked Artemis. His stomach dropped and he felt a headache coming along. "Because you are one, I know it, I know!" squealed Penny, rocking in her chair. Artemis pinched the bridge of his nose. "Fabulous. Now, your brother thinks I am insane."
"Your welcome," said Penny brightly. Artemis glared at her. Mrs. DeMartino called Penny into the kitchen and they both walked out with dinner. They put it on the table and Penny screamed for Gideon.Gideon marched in, keeping his eyes low. He ate in silence, whereas Penny and Mrs. DeMartino chattered on and on and on. Artemis oberved for a while, eating quickly. "I really should be going," Artemis said. Mrs. DeMartino protested but Gideon stopped her. "Mother... he have no place for a guest here. I'll take him to place he can stay for the night, until he can get his affairs in order."
More protests in Italian. Gideon assured her, also in Italian. Finally, Mrs. DeMartino gave up and Gideon stood up. He motioned for Artemis to follow him. And they left, walking out the door. Penny was speechless, it all happened so fast. She ran to the door and screamed "GOOD BYE ARTEMIS!"
They walked down the several flights of stairs and stepped out into the street. It was only begining to get dark. Gideon jerked his head and muttered "Follow me. Don't look at anyone, keep your eyes down. And whatever you do, just keep following me, don't get distracted."
Artemis snorted. He crossed his arms. Gideon glared at him and crossed his arms. He was tall, much taller than Artemis. Thin, and dark, dark, curly hair. His eyes were a deep brown. He was...menacing. Artemis put his arms down and then said "All right. I will follow you then. Lead the way, Mr. DeMartino." "Don't call me that," hissed Gideon. He turned on his heel and stared storming off. Artemis stayed where he was, not sure if he was supposed to follow in Gideon's angry footsteps. But Gideon turned and looked over his shoulder at him and barked "Are you coming or not!?"
"I'm coming," said Artemis cooly and began walking. Gideon lead the way and eventually they came to a dark alley way. Artemis was only half-surprised when Gideon began walking down the alley way. "I'm supposing I'm sleeping in an alley way tonight?" he said sarcastically. Gideon didn't bat an eye, just kept walking.
Some how they mangaed to find themselves winding in and out of every alley way and short cut in New York City. By the time they had made it to the outskirts of the city, it was late. And dark. And Artemis was exhausted, not used to this much walking.
Gideon was leading him to a large, warehouse type building. It was run down looking. Glass in the windows was broken, rusted chains held huge doors shut. Artemis wrinkled his nose."Mr. DeMartino, I really don't think it's appropriate to sleep in such a pla-" "Shut up, I told you not to call me that," Gideon hissed again. Artemis snorted, again.
Now, Gideon began to get a little bit reckless. As if wandering the streets of New York City at night wasn't bad, Gideon was pushing packing crates in the alley way up against the wall. And climbing them, to reach a barely open window. He motioned for Artemis to follow him. Which he did, not without some trouble.
When he reached the top of the boxes, there was barely enough room for both young men to stand. They peered into the windows and Gideon said "Climb through." Artemis looked at him like he was a madman. "Are you insane? I can't fit through there." Gideon huffed. "If my MOTHER can fit through there, you can. Now, go."
Artemis went wide eyed. "When did your MOTHER climb through this window?" "Hurry up, we don't have much time," whispered Gideon. "I'll tell you when we get inside, it's a long stoy." "After you," said Artemis coldly.Gideon raised his fist, and suddenly Artemis was having flashbacks of four years ago... when Holly had socked him square in the nose and sent him flying across the room.
And with the recollection of that pain and the realization that if he was hit up here, he would probably fall and break his neck, Artemis grudgingly climbed through the window. He wasn't stupid enough to climb through head first, though. He situated himself and pushed his legs through first.
He had a little bit of trouble, and looked up to ask Gideon for help. But when he looked up, Gideon was going for his arms. Artemis began to protest, but Gideon grabbed his elbows and shoved. Artemis's elbows locked up painfully, and it felt like his arms were being pushed out backwards.
Artemis slipped in the window and free fell about twelve feet. He expected to land on hard ground, but surprisingly he landed in a pile of pillows. Or cushions. Something along those lines. Peculiar. It was like someone was expecting him. He looked up and yelled "Gideon! What are you doing?"
Gideon laughed spitefully. "I lied, Artemis. There is no way my mother could fit through this window." Artemis tried to stand up, but the cushions wouldn't allow him. There were too many and they were too soft. He flopped back down and screamed back up to Gideon "Explain all this!" Ugh, of all the situations Butler would have been uselful in, this was certainly the one when he was needed most
"I'll be back for you in the morning," said Gideon lightheartedly. And his shillouette dissapeared from the dimly backlit window. Artemis cried out and smacked his fist against the cushion. Well, this was bad. He was stuck, in a warehouse, alone. And the Artemis realized the pillows had been placed there because someone was expecting him.
Oh, bad. Very, very bad.
He somehow situated himself on his stomach and lay quietly, thinking. He finally came up with Gideon was part of a scheme to murder him. But why? Artemis shook his head. "No, think harder," he murmured. Maybe, he was so angry when he went to the store for his mother... yes, yes, that must be it. He must have gotten angry and gathered with his gang member friends and THEN they'd come up with this ridiculous plan to kill him.
Needless to say, Artemis didn't want to die in the Depression era. Nor did he wan't to die in New York City.Think of the time paradox that would cause. Artemis began crawling off the cushions, kicking them out of the way. "This is...ridiculous," he huffed, tumbling off the pillows.
Footsteps, heading his way. "Oh, dear God," he moaned, as he made out three people coming towards him with a flame-lit lantern. It wasn't till they got close enough to see their faces that Artemis really began to worry.
~
Holly Short opened her eyes and moaned blearily. It took a while for things to register. Annoying noise. Ringing. Phone. Phone was ringing. She slapped her hand around until she found the cool rectangle of plastic that was her cellular phone. She put it to her ear. Upside down. "Hello?" she said blearily. "Holly, I can hardly hear you," said Foaly.
"Foaly, I can hardly hear you," moaned Holly. "Huh? Holly, what's wrong with your phone?" asked Foaly. "What, I can't hear you!" said Holly, squinting her eyes and rubbing one of them. Foaly hung up. Holly threw the phone down and tried to go back to sleep. But 15 minutes later there was another annoying nose. Buzzing. Doorbell.
"Crap," hissed Holly, opening one eye. She tumbled out of bed and stumbled to the door. She jerked it open and found herself looking at two armed LEP officers. "Um... hello," she said, raising an eyebrow at the two corporals. Obviously, just two of the closest officers Foaly could send after her. "Mr. Foaly sent us," said one. "He was worried," said the other. "You didn't show up to work," said the first. The second one cleared his throat and said "Commander Kelp tried to tell him you needed the day off but..." The first one completed the sentence "Mr. Foaly was still worried." And, together they said, "So he sent us."
Holly thanked the two corporals, just boys really, and shut the door. She was feeling a little more awake now and ticked off. She stomped across the room, jerked open her closet door and changed into her spare uniform. As she was pulling the laces tighter on her boots, she was dialing a phone number on her cell phone. It had voice activation, but Holly was so angry she knew even her own phone wouldn't recognize her.
"Trouble Kelp, I'm going to MURDER you. What's so wrong with me that you thought it was nessacary I took the day off, hmm?" she barked into the phone. Trouble chuckled nervously. "Well, you seemed really upset yesterday so I, ahem, thought maybe you needed a...ahem, recooperation day." "I do not need to recuperate. I am absoutely fine, COMMANDER, and I don't need you telling the whole force that there is something wrong with me!"
She terminated the call, and then looked up. Tears sprang to her eyes. She sighed and wiped them away. If she had acted like that to...her former commander... she would have been suspended for sure. It was only because she and Trouble were friends that she could yell at him like that. Holly put the phone down on the bed and put her face in her hands. Maybe he was right, maybe she did need to just rest for a while.
But,no, she had a job to do. She picked up her phone and pressed redial. Trouble picked up halfway through the first ring. "Yes, Captain Short?" "Trouble, I'm sorry." He chuckled. "I know... Holly. I'll see you when you get down here."
~
By the light of the lantern, Artemis could make out three faces. The faces themselves weren't what bothered him, at least the faces of two of them. The one holding the lantern was a slender female, maybe eighteen years of age. Something looked strange about her eyes and she had ghostly white hair that tumbed wavy down to her waist. She was wearing a simple white night gown.
Standing next to her was a young Asian man of about twenty years of age with short dark hair. He looked at Artemis closely, and Artemis realized something disturbing... the young man had no arms. He was shirtless and wearing a pair of dark canvas pants.
And standing next to him, barely visible, was a teeny-tiny little girl. Barely two feet tall. Artemis didn't even notice her until the white-haired girl moved the lantern when she leaned over. The little girl was wearing a nightgown several sizes too big and was wearing her short brown hair in two perky pigtails.
The white haired girl leaned over and said "Hello. What are you doing here?" She was very friendly and didn't seem worried at all. The young armless man looked angry. The teeny-tiny girl looked scared senseless. Artemis shrugged. "I got pushed down." "From all the way up there?" asked the young man. The teeny-tiny girl shivered. The young man and the white-haired girl looked at each other briefly and the girl muttered, "Gideon, that donkey."
She sighed and held out a hand. Artemis grasped it and she hauled him up. "What's your name, kid?" asked the youngman, even thought he was barely four years older than him. "Artemis Fowl," Artemis said. The armless one laughed. "Well, it's a strange name, but not the strangest I've heard. Little Ruby here's older brother's named Perigrin."
"As in the falcon?" asked Artemis to the little girl, Ruby. She nodded, shaking. "And your names?" Artemis continued calmly, his gaze passing over the two others. The girl holding the lantern said introduced herself as Liesel. And the young man introduced himself as Soichi.
Liesel laughed darkly. "And we are just three small parts of The Lotus House of Strange Wonders," she said, grimly. Ruby clung to Soichi's leg as he said "Basically... we are all a bunch of freaks. As if you couldn't already tell." Artemis cleared his throat. "I wouldn't say freaks. You all seem like very nice people to me."
"Seems like that, huh?" said Soichi coldy. Liesel smacked him on the shoulder. "Well... I suppose if Gideon brought you here, then you stay with us for the night. Gideon is a good friend of ours. He has been since we got here," continued Liesel. She turned gracefully and the others began to follow her. Artemis followed, too.
"If you don't mind my asking," said Artemis. "How long have you been here?" It was Soichi's turn to explain. "Three years. You see... we used to travel all over the world, showing off our... hmm, talents, shall we say? But then the boss's money ran out, and we were stuck in New York City. No money for a train or boat ticket, no money for a hotel. Lucky for us we ran into Gideon and he showed us this place. So at least we have a roof over our heads."
Liesel lead them down a flight of stairs, and through a door, into a large, softly lit basement-type area. To Artemis's surprise, somebody had a fire burning in the middle of the room. People sat on cushions, or pillows, all around the room. Some sat around the fire, chatting with others. There were maybe seven others in the room. They looked up when Artemis, Soichi, Liesel and Ruby walked in. The room was filled with a very delicious smell, and it made Artemis's stomach rumble. He hadn't had much to eat at the DeMartino's dinner. No surprise there. The DeMartino's probably hadn't gotten enough in weeks.
Liesel walked to the person tending to the food at the fire. She was a tall woman, and visibly there seemed to be nothing wrong with her. Standing next to her was another dwarf-sized female. Liesel whispered to the woman, and they both stared directly at Artemis. The woman smiled gently and nodded his way. The dwaf also smiled, but not as warmly.
Liesel clapped her hands to get everyone's attention. Everyhead in the room turned her way. "People, this is Artemis Fowl. He is going to stay the night with us, so make him welcome." She narrowed her eyes. "And those of you with more...visible talents... please refrain from frightening the new-comer."
The entire room laughed. Liesel motioned for Artemis to come sit next to her around the fire. When he was settled, Liesel introduced him to Margaret and Willow. Margaret was the tall woman, and Willow was the dwarf. "Hello," said Artemis. "Pleasure to meet you."
Margaret chuckled. "Ahh... we have a properly brung up lad here. The pleasure is all mine, Master Fowl," she said, with a wink. Willow simply said "Hello" and went back to staring at him. Liesel leaned back. "Willow and Peregrin are Ruby's older sister and brother. Margaret is basically our cook, and Soichi is our entertaiment. He's quite agile with those toes," said Liesel conversationally. Artemis nodded. "And what about you?" he asked. "Oh, me? I guess I'm kind of like their bodyguard. I knew this man once... he taught me a few things. How to fight. It's been a lifesaver..." answered Liesel absently.
But then she was all smiles again, and popped up. "Ha ha," she laughed. "Bet you can't guess what my talent is." "Obviously, you fight with Soichi. I would love to see him try and defend himself," said Artemis, with a low chuckle. Liesel burst into laughter. "Ahh, no. I am going to try that now. No... actually, I don't exactly have a talent. Like the dwarves, people came just to look at me."
"Why? Unbelievable beauty?" joked Artemis. Two in a row. He was getting better at this. "No. I doubt people would see beauty, Artemis. I'm an albino," said Liesel quietly. "Hmmm," murmured Artemis, turning to look at her. He'd studied albinism once, after an albinistc boy at a school function. He'd been facsinated with it, but it had worn off. But now, he was glad for the knowledge.
She had the traits. White hair, even though it wasn't the only color hair an albnistic person could have. He couldn't make out the color of her eyes, but they may or may not have been red. A person with albinism will often have light blue eyes, or looking at other forms of the condition, even normal colored eyes, like hazel. Sometimes, the eyes of an albino can even be purple. Liesel had incredibly pale skin. That was noticeable even in the dim orange-ish light of the fire. Paler than even Artemis. "Well... are you disgusted yet?" asked Liesel, darkly.
Artemis shook his head. "No, of course not. I'm intrigued, if you don't mind my saying," he said. Liesel laughed. "All right then. You aren't a bad guy, Artemis," she said. Margaret slammed the spoon she was using against the pot and instantly, the occupants of the room were crowded around the fire. Willow handed out bowls full of steaming hot food.
Liesel took two, one for herself, and one for Artemis. She passed the bowl over to him. Artemis looked. Green beans. They smelled delightful. "Margaret makes the best green beans. She grew up in Oaklahoma, you see. Her mother taught her this recipie. She puts ham in the beans, and it gives them a whole new flavor. Try them," said Liesel, already eating. Artemis tried them. They WERE good.
People chatted as they ate, and Artemis studied them closely. Ruby and Willow were sitting next to another dwarf-sized, although muscular, male. Peregrin then. There was Soichi, talking to another girl, also Asian, possibly a sister. Artemis almost laughed out loud when she realized the girl had no legs. They were a pair, it seemed. Sitting next to them was an unbelievably tall man. Seven feet easily. He didn't look very friendly. And next to him was a person... with a bag over his head? Artemis blinked when his eyes rested on this strange person. Yes, it was a man, with a flour bag over his head. The bag had two holes cut into it so he could see.
Artemis shivered. This was going to be a stange night.
~
Captain Holly Short marched into LEP headquaters. She kept right on marching until she reached Commander Kelp's office. She knocked. Trouble grunted, the usual. Holly walked in. "Good morning sir," she said calmly. "Afternoon, actually, Captain. But I won't hold it against you."
Holly blinked. She's slept well into the afternoon hours. Trouble was busy with something, but he flung a file folder onto the desk and motioned for Holly to pick it up. She did. "Sir, how is your brother?" she asked. Trouble nodded. "Doing fine. Whining as usual. He'll be in the infirmary until tomorrow. You did a good job, Captain. Thank you."
"You're welcome, sir," said Holly quietly. She hated this... this formality. Ever since Trouble had been promoted, things had changed. They always had to call each other by ranks, or "sir" in the case of Holly to Trouble. They couldn't joke around as much, and Holly missed the old days when they could openly insult each other for fun.
"What's in the folder?" she asked. "Manny Spruce's file. The recon officer we sent out couldn't catch him. So, I figured I let you have a go at it. What do you say?" said Trouble, tapping away at a keyboard. Holly blinked. "That's... thank you, sir," she said. "Hmmph. Go talk to Foaly, he'll bring you up to speed. Dimissed."
Holly turned on her heel and walked out of the office, heading towards the Ops Booth. Foaly had been reinstated after Trouble was appointed Commander, and frankly now things ran a lot smoother. She knocked on the glass and Foaly buzzed her in. She waved the folder at him. "Spruce. I got Spruce's case?" she asked. "Yep," sighed Foaly. "I asked them not to send me a newbie, but do they listen to me? No, of course not. So I got Trouble to give you the case."
"Thanks," Holly said, her shoulders drooping in relief. "I needed a rouge pixie's butt to kick today." "I know," answered Foaly. He brought up a map on the plasma screens. A red beacon blipped softly over Spain. Holly smiled. She loved Spain.
~
Artemis fell asleep after dinner. He had been talking with Liesel and just drifted off. Everyone else fell asleep soon after.
He awoke to someone kicking him in the head. He opened his eyes slowly and saw Soichi hopping up and down on one leg, using the other to kick Artemis's head. Artemis sat up and Soichi snorted "Finally." Gideon was standing next to him and he didn't look happy.
The light in the room was different in the early morning. A blue-ish light drifted in through small windows. The others were cleaning up it looked like. Artemis got up and straightened his clothes. Soichi studied him. "You're right, Gideon. He does seem different, but I really don't think the boss is gonna buy this."
Artemis ****ed an eyebrow at them. "Buy what?" he asked. Gideon continued, ignoring him. "Look at his eyes, Soichi. They're eerie. I think my sister is right, and if she is, Artemis is a good addition to your show." "What show, Gideon? The show is non-exsistent. And I really doubt people are going to pay to see something as dumb as a time-travelling little boy."
Artemis scoffed. "Gideon, are you trying to sell me to these people? Really, don't you think that's a little immature?" he said. Gideon looked at him briefly and then went back to ignoring him. Soichi shook his head. "Gideon, no. This ain't gonna work, trust me."
Gideon sighed. "Fine," he said. He grabbed Artemis's shoulder and dragged him forward towards the stairs.
Going up the stairs, they had to moved over to make room for a man coming down. He had long stringy hair and was wearing a tattered cloak over dark clothes. He had no shoes. "Sir," said Gideon, nodding. The man didn't even acknowledge them.
Gideon kept on going after the man had dissapeared into the basement where Soichi and the others were. Artemis looked over his shoulder briefly Something about that man didn't seem right, and it wasn't just his appearance. He had an aura of.... bad around him. Artemis shuddered and Gideon barked for him to hurry up.
They were almost to the window where they had gotten in through earlier when they heard a ear-splitting shriek.
Gideon stumbled out the sound of it and whipped around. "What the... that was Ruby," he yelled, and took off running back towards the stairs. Artemis's brow furrowed and he went after Gideon. They rushed down the stairs and burst into the basement room. All of the occupants of the room were dead silent and absolutely still. They were all looking at the cloaked man, and Ruby. The man was towering over the tiny girl, who was bent over, holding her arm to her chest. The man was holding a knife.
"You stupid, stupid girl," hissed the man. "You know what that money was for. We don't need you off spending it on luxuries." "It wasn't a luxury, it was matches," said Margaret, rushing to the little girl. "We needed them." The man scoffed. It didn't look like he was going to apologize any time soon.
Ruby looked up at Margaret. She held out her arm and gave a tiny smile as the man began to storm past Artemis and Gideon back up the stairs. Margaret smiled too, as did the entire room. Ruby had a secret talent that the boss didn't know about.
Artemis looked at Ruby's arm in awe. Even though her hands were covered in blood, the wound from the knife was almost totally gone. What should have been a deep gash was now just a tiny scar. "I've seen this before," thought Artemis. Ruby stood up and ran to her brother.
It was like magic. |
|
|
|
|
| |
