CHAPTER ONE
One story passed down through generations, echo within a small village. There is not a single person living there that does not know the tale. You could say the story was their way of life. Fragments of this story can be heard outside of the village; a story of a little girl in red who saved her people from a wolf. However those outside the village do not know the full story. Yes it is true a little girl in red killed a wolf to save her village. The story did not end with their celebration. As the wolf lay dying on the forest floor he uttered a curse; a curse that would he would return until he took his revenge on the one who killed him. No one took this curse seriously. Until many years later when a wolf emerged seeking the little girl out. His fate was to die by her hands again but he promised, like before, that he would return. And so this cycle continued with the villagers praying these two would stop being reborn. Prayers were answered two thousand years later when little Red was born as a boy and the wolf a girl, the sign the curse was ending with them.
Young Red found himself at a fork in the road. The signs indicating which way to go had crumbled away leaving him to guess. Annoyance crossed face as he massaged the bridge of his nose. It would not look good if he got lost after convincing his mother to go alone. The sun beat down on him making him regret the red cloak lent to him. Taking a moment he looked himself over; a suit does not match a red cloak. It was a tradition he hated; having to wear it just because he was little Red Ridinghood. He also hated the fact he couldn't use his real name. Many of his past selves threw away their real name when it was discovered they were the reincarnated hero. He however did not. He enjoyed the name Artemis Fowl. I will have to use Red even at my grandmother's, Artemis thought bitterly to himself. Sighing he picks up the basket he placed on the ground and chose to go left; an eight year old should not keep his grandmother waiting.
Artemis stood still and began concentrating when he admitted he was lost. He concluded he should have gone the other way. He had retraced his steps four times now and could not tell how to return to the fork in the road. He was sure to hear about this from his mother. Scratch that his training master, Butler, would be more tiring to hear from. At the thought, Artemis chuckled to himself. He found it ridiculous that he had to train everyday; he had no stamina for the battlefield. Artemis was the brains not muscle. This was disturbing to the entire village. Artemis placed his hand upon his stomach when it began talking. At first his growling stomach was all he could hear until a louder growl burst through his eardrums. Spinning around Artemis saw a tiger bearing its teeth at him. He was warned that other animals roamed the forest but he did not think one would be a tiger. There was actually no evidence of tigers being in the forest. Artemis began slowly walking backwards only to trip over some rocks. When Artemis' butt landed on the ground the tiger pounced. Artemis flinched when a blur flew past him and red liquid splashed his face. Standing in front of him was a woman with an auburn crew cut that matched her hazel eyes. She stood at 5'7 which Artemis thought was off but he shook the thought away. He thought it weird that she wore a green combat outfit. He held his breath when his eyes landed on the wolf ears placed atop her head. Scanning down he saw a matching tail. The woman threw the tiger aside, shaking it from her claws; now visible to Artemis.
"Are you alright?" She asked kneeling in front of him. Artemis meets her eyes with his blue ones; hers seemed very familiar. He flinched away when she reached her hand out to wipe the blood from his face. She blinked in confusion before quickly taking her hand away. She stood and dropped some cloth. Artemis stared at it before wiping the blood off with it.
"Are you not as the villagers say?" He questions.
"What is it they say about me?"
"You are a monster that should be dealt with but not to be taken lightly."
"How old are you?" She asks with a raised eyebrow.
"Eight. I am bright for my age."
"Little Red Ridinghood is a genius," she half laughs.
"Why save me when you could have let me die?" Artemis did not get an answer. "You want to kill me yourself?"
"A monster is in the eyes of the beholder, Red." She began to walk off.
"Wolf!" He shouted.
"My name is Holly," She softly said turning back to him. Artemis felt he knew that already but could not understand why.
"We are not supposed to exchange names," he responds. Holly nods with a sigh. "…I'm lost."
"Is that the genius talking?" Holly jokes. Artemis cringes. "You went the wrong way."
"Of course I did," he sighs deeply. He blinks when a hand is offered to him.
"It will be easier this way; I can protect you better for other animals... I would hate for you to get even more lost," she grins.
"I am not a hand holder, never have been."
"In that case," Holly glances around before grabbing a stick, "Hold this."
"I beg your pardon?"
"You are not a normal eight year old. It is a replacement for my hand." She watches Artemis think this through before he hesitantly grabs the stick. Indirectly holding hands. Butler would love to see this. For a while the remained silent as Holly lead Artemis out of the forest. At some point Artemis dared conversation which lead to many lectures and insults from both parties. Strangely Artemis found that he enjoyed her company, but realized that was a problem. Holly was dealing with the same situation in her brain wondering if she should even be helping him. Trying to ignore her thoughts, her mind wondered back to Artemis' earlier question. In truth Holly had no desire to kill him; unlike her past selves.
"I appreciate the help," Artemis says when they arrive at the exit leading to his grandmother's house.
"You're welcome."
"Holly… my real name is Artemis," he says before walking away.
Artemis Fowl, now seventeen years old, stands in his father's study listening to the conversation upsetting everyone in the room. Many of the livestock have turned up dead and some of the villagers are missing. Artemis Fowl senior, as head of the village, tries calming the visitors while Artemis watches his father. There was no mistake his father was tired but he continued to do his best to solve this situation. Artemis' eyes snap to the others when one says the wolf must die. All eyes fell on him once those words were heard. Artemis senior cleared his throat and made an argument that another animal could have been behind this. Until the wolf declared war no one was allowed to hunt it.
"This is a declaration or war!" one man shouted.
"How could you defend the wolf?!" a woman cried.
"We all know when the wolf wants war. This is not the time. You expect my son to fight when he is not ready and no need to fight."
"People are missing!" another man hollered.
"And I am dealing with that. We have many search parties out looking for them."
"Your son needs to take up the name Red and kill the wolf!" The room fell silent and everyone waited for Artemis to say something. He stood and left the room, convinced his father would be able to settle everyone down. He wondered into the kitchen where his mother was, she was humming a song she used to sing to him before bed. Glancing out the window Artemis saw his younger twin brothers playing with Juliet, Butler's younger sister. Maybe playing wasn't the right word. It was more like Juliet bullying them. Artemis grinned as he witnessed Myles drag Beckett away and whisper in his ear; another plan from his smart brother.
"Arty could you take these to your grandmother?" Angeline asked bringing him a basket. He sighed. It always had to be him because of the curse.
"This curse is ridiculous."
"I'm sorry dear. You're the only one that can enter that part of the forest," she said with pure sadness on her face. Artemis tensed at the sight and grabbed the Red cloak from the hall.
"It's alright mother… Mom." He placed the cloak on, complaining about how it didn't match his suit. Angeline smiles and laughs before kissing her son on the forehead.
"Be safe Arty."
"I will… mom," he took one last glance at his brothers before heading out.
Artemis found himself at the familiar fork in the road as he took a break. Resting the basket on the ground he stretches from the walk. Artemis looks over the signs placed side by side; wrong and right. Poorly designed but Artemis enjoyed looking at them since the joke was for him. His second day going to visit grandmother he found these two stuck in the ground. At first he found them to be extremely insulting but as time went on he appreciated the joke. Rustling tree leaves snapped him back to the present. He nearly looked behind him but forced himself to stop. With a deep breath he picks up the basket, peeks from the corner of his eye at the figure standing on a tree branch, and then deliberately goes left.
