The Frond Legacy
Version 2.1
Author's Note: This damn fic is like an abusive lover. I've never finished it yet, but I keep coming back to it. It was first begun in 03, then subsequently abandoned. I attempted to continue it in 04, abandoned it again. In 05 I began contemplating a new plot, and wrote some preliminary jottings, which were subsequently lost. Now, I've got a much more detailed, sensible plot going here. The events take place after The Lost Colony, just as a side note. Right, this time for sure, then...
Chapter One
Emotional was not typically the first word which came to mind when describing Artemis Fowl, Senior. In fact, it usually wasn't even on the top ten words used to describe him. Yet totally contrary to what the public would expect, the great leader and Fowl patriarch broke out into tears upon spotting his eldest son, who had been missing for close to three years now.
It was a bright morning, yet the warm weather and gentle breeze held no pleasure for Artemis, Senior as he arose from his bed. His first action was to check his bio-mechanical leg, which had replaced the one he had lost off of the coast of Murmansk. The leg was a marvel of modern engineering, and operated via specialized neurological linkages between his brain and and the miniature motors inside the leg. It was even covered in bio-identical skin, giving it the appearance of a normal limb at first glance. Not only that, but it had cost somewhere in the vicinity of three million euros. But the triumph of medical science failed to interest him. Arty would have been fascinated by it, his subconscious whispered to him. Not only that, but he would have even found a way to improve it, too. He was a genius, but he's gone now.
Artemis dismissed this traitorous thought as if it were an impertinent servant. In fact, it was just how he had dismissed Artemis Junior's bodyguard, Butler, and his wild ravings about supernatural creatures and dimensional transport. All that Artemis Senior knew for certain was that his boy -- his only treasure for years -- was gone.
But life goes on, he reminded himself with an effort. And now there were the twins to look after. He began to dress, choosing a comfortable pair of slacks from the closet and an open-necked polo shirt. As he fastened his belt, he heard the doorbell ring. With a muffled curse, Artemis slipped on a pair of loafers and walked downstairs to the entryway of the manor. He spotted two forms through the frosted glass besides the door. One, a tall, enormous figure, could only be Butler. The other, however, was shorter, and Artemis' pulse quickened as he walked towards the door. He opened it quickly, looking out onto the stoop.
"Hello, Father," Artemis Fowl the Second said.
It was an hour later. The two Artemises, Senior and Junior, sat across from one another in the sitting room, with Butler standing discreetly off to the side. Artemis Senior's hand still trembled slightly as he sipped his tea.
"So you're telling me that it's all true?" he asked, looking his son in his mismatched eyes. "Everything Butler told us? About fairies and elves?"
"Every word of it," Artemis said. "Though I must tell you that this must remain a secret. Butler and I, because of our actions, are immune to any future mind wipes. You and Mother, however, are not." He paused. "Butler had mentioned something about...twins?"
Fowl Senior laughed at how Artemis delicately tested the word, as if it were made of fine crystal, and would break if used roughly. "Yes. They're with your mother right now, at her sister's house for the weekend. Identical twin brothers. I think that you'll get along splendidly."
"I hope so," Artemis said. "I am unused to being a brother. This will take some practice."
Butler grunted delicately. "One question, Artemis. Ah, Junior, that is. How will you explain the fact that you have not aged in the past three years to the authorities?"
"That is a question to which I have given much thought to, Butler," Artemis replied. "Logically, the subject of time travel must never arise, therefore for all intents and purposes I am now eighteen. The discrepancy in appearance could be disguised by plastic surgery, but the fact that I have not grown in height nor weight for the past three years would be noticed by any competent physician." He stroked his chin pensively. "It seems as though we are faced with quite a conundrum."
"Well, fortunately, it's still the summer, so that's not a pressing concern," his father said, dismissing the questions surrounding temporal dislocation as if they were nothing more important than the score of a football game. "What's important is that you're back, Arty. We're a family again." His eyes brimmed with tears as he reached across the coffee table to wrap Artemis in a bone-crushing hug. When he released him, however, he was all business. "So, you've got the whole summer ahead of you. What do you plan to do? Do you want to travel somewhere? I hear that St. Bart's is beautiful this time of year."
"I honestly don't know what my plans are," Artemis said, nonplussed. "I suppose that I must begin making plans for attending university, since I'm now legally eighteen. Then there are some interesting elements to fairy communications systems that I want to investigate. Also, I'd like to finish my paper on nuclear medicine. But as for grand schemes, I've none at the moment."
"Then that's for the best," his father concluded. "Life for us shall finally return to normal."
Normal? Butler thought. For us, there's no such thing.
Well, here's the first chapter, ready for reviewing. I've tried to polish it up as much as is feasible, but if I've committed some sort of continuity or stylistic error, let me know. I eagerly await some reviews!