Disclaimer:I don't own anything or anyone from Artemis Fowl.

I'm closer to the future
Than I was yesterday.
The highway of the future
Is in each break of day.
I frame my future
By the decisions I make.
I encounter the future
If diligent steps I take.
Plans for the future
I made in the past.
Today I face the future
Yet it won't last.
Depending on the future
Is so inefficient.
Because the so-called future
Is vague and transient!
'You'll live well in the future
If the present is well lived!'

Features of the Future
~By Robert Reuben

Finally, it was done.

The fruits of several hours of thought, and several more hours of stressing labor, lay within grasp. It was a freshly printed pile of papers; nothing seemingly special to the casual eye.

So why did he not want to look? To read what he himself had written, had pieced together, and now, finally finished?

It was a beautiful piece of work; beautiful and horrible.

With slightly trembling fingers, he took the papers, and read the first line in a whisper.

"The factors of Loss, derived from the Factor itself."

The rest, he dared not utter; not even in the deathly silence of night.

The power to choose life, or death, is something no one should possess. Least of all a child; even if that child is a genius.

So now you know.

Even Artemis Fowl had fears.

"Butler, old friend, you don't have to creep up on me."

The old manservant relaxed, a small smile stretching his face for a split second before disappearing. "Not that I could creep up without you noticing, Artemis." he peeked over at the blank computer screen, before meeting the mismatched eyes in front of him.

"You've finished, then?"

Artemis nodded wearily, wanting nothing more than to collapse into bed and sleep for a day. He knew Butler was waiting for him to explain his project away, but Artemis could no more do that than he could stab his bodyguard in the chest. There were some things that even an experienced adult such as Butler could not handle.

And Butler, being Butler, was too polite to pursue his curiosity. "I'll leave you alone, then."

He began to walk out of the room, then half turned back. "Artemis, if you need anything..."

"I'll let you know."

And as the door shut behind his manservant, Artemis leaned forward, resting his face in his hands, feeling the inescapable feeling of gloom descend over his mind once more.

Knowing what lies in the future can do that to a person.

"You have four messages." the mechanical voice of the answering machine droned out, then it switched to the easily distinguishable voice of Holly Short.

"Hey Artemis; this is Holly, obviously. How are you?"

"Artemis, hi; call me back as soon as possible, okay?"

"It's been three days, Artemis. Why aren't you calling me back?"

"Artemis, if you don't call me back, I'm going to Foaly, and not just for aboveground clearance!"

Slightly annoyed, but still amused from the peeved tone of Holly's voice, Artemis sat on his bed, gazing at the fairy phone on his finger. For some reason, he just couldn't find the motivation to call her back, even with the tone of worry in her voice. It was interesting, to have someone like Holly worry about him. At the moment, though, he just couldn't bring himself to care.

It would seem that depression is more powerful a force than many people reckon, he pondered dully, attempting to keep his gaze away from the half-read thick stack of papers that littered his bedroom desk.

Anyone could read them now, but he doubted it would make sense to any but the most intelligent minds. Of all the people Artemis knew, he knew of only three who could possibly read the Factors and come out with an answer. After that, it wasn't even sure if they would retain their sanity, so he would rather not reveal what he had found to them, and possibly keep them safe.

Safe? What am I kidding myself? Artemis sighed, leaning back and closing his eyes. Even if I didn't tell them, it would happen; the Loss Factor is an independent variable in this equation, but even if it were manipulated, it would remain the same, because of other factors that will change as well...

While he was floating lazily in this train of thought, a soft tapping came from the glass of the right corner window, across from where he slumped. "Come in," Artemis murmured somewhat sluggishly, then gave a short, harsh laugh at the sound of his own voice.

The window swung outwards, then closed with a sharp click after a moment of being rattled from the fairy's shield vibration. Holly materialized, sitting on the window sill, then dropped down to the floor, landing with no sound at all.

"I called you four times, and you didn't answer any of them. That was two days ago!" she hissed, sounding very put out. After flicking a desk lamp on, she turned to Artemis, and looked closer.

"What did you do this time, Mud Boy?" she sighed, her anger finally departing.

"Nothing of enormous consequence," Artemis half-muttered, and pulled himself into a sitting position.

"You look horrible," she informed him, then took a seat on his desk chair, turning back and forth by the swinging of her legs. "Are you all right?"

This is an idea I got while I was IMing, and here, finally, is the prologue and the first chapter. Sorry about the shortness of the prologue and stuff, but I promise that the next chapters will be longer. Updates will be slow or fast, depending on how much writing time I have, but I'll try to update around once every week or so, or once every two weeks.

Anyhow, constructive criticism and comments are all welcome, and I hope you all enjoy reading this!