Chapter 1

Captain Holly Short was sitting at her cubicle, preparing to sign the last sheet of paperwork she had for the day, when a male sprite's voice blared over the room's intercom.

"Captain Short, report to the East Chute tunnels immediately for an underground recon. We got a mad troll on the loose and swipin'!"

Holly grabbed her helmet, not bothering to shove the semi-confidential documents into the desk drawer, and sprinted for the door amid the stares of her colleagues.

She reached ops HQ in record time and burst through the doors. "Foaly, emergency," she said curtly, but he was already holding out a pair of wings.

"Two college corporals filling their traffic hours are keeping track of the troll's movements," the technological centaur informed Holly, pointing to the huge plasma screen that was the main attraction of the computer room. "As you can see, a potential disaster."

Holly could see. The troll, picked up on the tunnel cameras, was thrashing and bellowing in classic male form, raking the air in painful swipes. She couldn't see the two officers-in-training, which meant one of two things: either they were keeping their distance, or had already been ingested. She finished strapping on her wings and jogged toward the door, flicking the setting on her gun to three. "Got me on a line, Foaly?"

He responded through her helmet. "Yep. Good luck, captain, and wait for the bouncer boys to get there. I mean Retrieval. That troll must be on steroids."

Holly grunted. The map of her route – like she needed one – and the no-fly zone were already glowing in her vision. Normally there was no flying permitted in Haven City, but officers were given a loophole at a certain altitude: desperate cause. This, she conjectured, was a desperate cause, and she took to the skies. Figuratively, since she was miles underground.

By the time Holly hit the perimetre, all civilian activity had drained away. Foaly was hemming and humming in her ear, apparently absorbed in his toys. Finally he spoke. "Captain, good news and bad news. The corporals are alive."

Going much faster than anything but law enforcement would excuse, Holly turned into a small tunnel and came out into a much bigger one in a rush of air. "And the bad news?"

Foaly sucked in a breath. "Holly, you of all people are aware of why it isn't a good idea to get closer to a troll."

"Yes, of course," she said, irritated. "What's the bad news, Foaly?"

"One of the elves just got closer."

"D'Arvit!" Holly swore as she closed the throttle on her wings. Her map showed her that she was only a couple hundred yards away from the site. Roars reverberated off the tunnel walls and crashed into her helmet sensors. She winced and swung lower.

The problem with having fairies train in the field was that it was too practical. Trainees were not issued real weapons except buzz batons and short of absolute necessity did not adopt wings until their first acorns were pinned to their chests. That meant that if there was a dangerous situation, not only could the corporals not fight back with any real force but they also couldn't escape in a hurry. Of course, what two college elves were doing cornering a live troll was beyond Holly's imagination.

Looking ahead, she saw a huge mass of fur lumbering back and forth with dramatic waves and thrusts. A small lonely figure could be seen hovering around the edges of the troll's rage, circling cautiously but not cautiously enough for a seasoned officer's taste. The other elf was not evident.

Holly spoke into her helmet mike. "Location confirmed, Foaly. Get medical warlocks out here ASAP; I think we have an injured fairy on our hands. At least." By the looks of things there won't be any blood left to clean up once the warlocks do get here.

Keys clicked in the background. "Roger that, Holly. I'm patching you through to the Corporal Plank's helmet. Hang on a minute."

There was static, then a subdued crack as the connection was established. Foaly's voice came over again. "Okay, Holly. Speak to her. Get her out of there."

Holly swept the narrow tunnel with her eyes as she flew close to the wall. Her? That must be the newest female Recon prospect whose name was on everyone's lips at the police bars. A sucker for shuttle rides, and apparently quite the shot. Holly swooped in until she was barely forty feet from the troll and hovered there out of reach.

She hissed into her helmet mike. "Corporal Plank, can you hear me? My name is Captain Short. I'm behind you. Don't make any sudden moves."

The corporal froze. Her head slowly twisted back and forth, trying to pinpoint the source of the sound. Holly was shielded, but the younger elf`s helmet filters picked her up. A high female voice came over the speakers. "Yessir, captain. Receiving."

"Where's your partner, corporal? Are you okay?"

"Corporal Mat Hour is down, sir," Plank said grimly. "The troll got a whiff of him and threw him. I don't know whether he's dead or alive."

Holly caught a nuance of emotion beneath the determined tones. "Fine, corporal. Step back very, very carefully. I presume you don't want whatever happened to Hour to happen to you."

A crackle in the background disrupted her thoughts. Commander Root's voice came over the line. "Captain Short, are you in position?"

Holly motioned to the corporal impatiently, who still hadn't moved. "Yessir. I'm attempting to pull Corporal Plank out of danger, but she's not coming back."

"She? Not to be sexist, but I'm hardly surprised," Root grunted. "All right, Short, tell her that if she doesn't obey you at once I'm throwing her out of the force altogether."

Holly sighed. "Corporal Plank, I have Commander Root on the line. You know, the one who can ruin your future in a matter of seconds. He suggests, as I earnestly do, that you remove yourself from the troll's vicinity within the next five seconds if you don't want to kiss your uniform goodbye."

The frustration was obvious in Plank's voice. "But, sir, Hour is right here. Look at the way that troll is beating around the rock to the right. He can't get behind it yet, but it's fascinating him. I'd be willing to bet that my partner is behind it. Can't we do something, captain?"

"Corporal, I can't attack that troll! I'm Recon; I'm here to track. Believe me, you'll understand police dynamics if you ever make the squad. And anyway, Retrieval will be here in less than a minute."

The commander's voice sounded in her ear again. "Well, captain? Has she come back yet? What's your status?"

Sweating and extremely annoyed, thought Holly grumpily. Out loud she replied, "Sitting tight, sir, as ordered." The troll began nosing along the rock face. "Plank is, eh, listening." Not obeying, but Holly decided that was a technicality.

"Good. Retrieval is there. Get yourself and Plank out of the vicinity and watch the show." He signed off.

Holly went forward a few more feet and snatched at Plank's elbow. "Corporal, I just covered your back. Now cover mine. If those boys see you near the troll we'll both get canned."

The female corporal reluctantly let herself be jerked back as a whooshing sound filled the tunnel and a team of black-suited Retrieval fairies zipped past their comrades. Holly pushed Plank back and shut off her wings, crouching in readiness for action.

The elves and sprites engaged the troll immediately, flying crazily in desperate attempts to surround it, stringing netting and ropes around its flailing limbs. Holly growled and punched the corporal's shoulder.

"See what fun you almost missed?" she snapped, pushing her gun into its holster. "You could have been killed. I'm sure you'd love to have all your Academy training go toward that cause." Renewed static in her helmet attracted her attention. "Captain Short, one two one two. Foaly, is that you?"

A hard, displeased voice shouted in her ear. "No, captain, this is not Foaly. This is Commander Root again, and I want both you females to report to my office immediately! That means within the hour. As you'll be walking the whole way, I would suggest that you get moving. No, Short, you may not attach Plank to your belt and do a fly-over. And when you get here, I want a good explanation as to why two traffic patrollers still in diapers were anywhere near a troll in the first place." Root paused for breath before continuing. "There will be serious recriminations for this, Short. I hope Plank knows how to survive on the streets, because that's where she may end up before sunrise."

Holly was left staring blankly into space as the line went dead. Shaking herself, she rose. "Congratulations on making the commander furious with you, Plank. I've been ordered to convey you to his office without further delay, and it isn't to receive a medal."

Plank glanced back at the loud battle raging between the Retrieval team and their target. Warlocks had joined the scene and were tending two downed officers. She hesitated just long enough to make Holly's face go red, then turned to her commanding officer. "Very good, captain. I'll talk to Hour later." She watched Holly walk away with some surprise. "Aren't you going to strap me on so we can fly there?"

Holly began to trudge away, hands in her pockets. "Nope. The commander would prefer that we walk, so walk we will. It's good exercise. Maybe by the time I'm finished keeping you entertained with an extensive rulebook drill on hierarchy and LEP procedure you'll feel better about sitting down in Commander Root's office for one of his famous heart-to-heart chats."