Thank you all for reviewing! I apologize for the wait. After I posted this, I realized I had absolutely botched the timeline of the clone's development in later chapters and had to rework them. I never should have decided to make a guess first, then work out the actual equations later. I'm sure my 8th grade math teacher would chastise me for this.

Butler watched Holly walk away from him. From behind, she looked like nothing more than a small human child. A small human child who he'd found asleep in Artemis's study, with his young charge absent. He'd woken her up, and she looked around in confusion before pushing him aside and sprinting for the door, yelling Artemis's name. Butler had been utterly confused but had followed her anyway. Holly had ran outside, where he had seen the Berserker Gate clothed in an ethereal green light, a powerful gale beginning to blow around the hill. Holly had dashed straight for it, Butler on her tail, Holly shouting Artemis's name.

That night seemed like both a million years ago and one second ago. It was too soon for him to wonder if he could have changed things, too soon for him to miss Artemis, too soon for him to do anything but sit beside the body and watch over him.

Artemis seemed small, almost fragile, the way he was now. How he was collapsed on the ground, his limbs splayed out awkwardly, the rays of the sun alighting on his pale skin. Death didn't seem to have had much of an affect on his complexion; his skin was still cold and pale, a faint bruise under his eye that he had sustained sometime during the night. He'd seen Artemis injured many more times than he would've liked, and it seemed ironic that, after everything he'd lived through, he would just fall over dead from a spell.

Butler couldn't bring himself to move Artemis's body. That would make it real. Instead, he remained where he was, sitting at the base of the hill and watching over Artemis until he heard a frantic yell. Butler wearily raised his head to see two distant figures approaching at a run; the sight of them forced him to sit up straight and calm himself. It was his duty to tell Artemis's parents that he had failed. Personal grief should be pushed aside to be dealt with later; he still had a job to do.

The distraught parents finally rushed up to him, covered in dust, dirt, scrapes, and bruises. They skidded to a stop and collapsed on either side of Artemis, shaking him and speaking to him and trying to wake him up. Butler merely watched their fruitless attempts, his shoulders slumped with guilt.

Finally, they were still as the reality of the situation hit them. Artemis's father shook his head slowly before slowly turning to look at Butler, denial and confusion in his eyes. "He's cold. There's no pulse. What happened? What is this?"

Butler could do nothing but shrug, unable to tear his eyes off the body. "He's dead."

Artemis's father remained frozen where he was, staring at Butler in horror before letting his head fall, staring down at his son. Angeline slowly raised her eyes to stare at him.

"What is this?" she asked, her voice trembling. "Is this some kind of sick joke?"

"I'm afraid not. I'm sorry."

Angeline shook her head, looking back down at her dead son before turning to Butler. "No. No. No. You're lying. He's not… he can't be…"

"I'm sorry."

She shook her head again, warding off the truth even as tears began to well up in her eyes. "What about Holly? Magic? Can't the fairies- can't they do something?"

He shook his head, noting that Artemis's father hadn't even reacted to the mention of fairies. "No. Holly was here when it happened. He didn't have a chance."

There would be questions later. His parents would surely want to know how their son had died, and Butler would not only have to explain Artemis's death to his mother, but he would have to dishonor his young charge by lying to his father, who still didn't know of the existence of fairies. In the wake of this tragedy, the importance of the fairies hiding from humans seemed to dwindle into nothing, but Butler was well-accustomed to shutting away his emotions and attempting to deal rationally with the situation at hand.

However, as of now, there were no questions. Simply grieving parents in the light of the rising sun. The same rays that would have brought death to Opal's plan, now shining down on the body of the boy who had died saving his race.


Holly sat against the wall of the above ground fairy base. It was no longer invisible to the naked eye and a trail of smoke was rising up from the windows. It had taken only a cursory examination for her to realize that there was nothing usable in there- she was stuck on the surface until someone remembered her and came to get her.

She had only been resting for a few minutes when a bright, dancing spot of light caught her eye. Holly watched it for a few moments, then sighed. She really didn't care what it was; she hadn't slept in over twenty four hours, she was exhausted and in pain, she was cut off from her people and grieving the death of one of her closet friends. She couldn't care less about a dancing spot of light.

That was when her fairy communicator ring buzzed.

Holly jumped, her mind racing. Artemis was the only one who could contact her through her ring. Was it him? Had he really cheated death after all?

Her face fell once she raised her hand to examine the ring- it was nothing but a text message, and not one from Artemis.

Holly, I can see and hear you. Tell me what happened. -Foaly

She frowned, looking around until her eyes settled on the spot of light again. It had settled on the ground next to her- now that she could get a good look at it, it appeared to be something similar to a dragonfly, but there was something off about it. "Foaly?" she asked. "Is that you?"

Her ring buzzed again a few seconds later.

Yes, it's me! I can't call you; the network is down. Tell me what happened at the Berserker Gate. I tried to get closer to see, but the magic was too strong for my bug. It flew away and I only just got back control of it and ran into you by accident. Tell me what happened!

This was too soon. She needed to prepare herself more for this moment, of telling people what had happened. She swallowed the lump in her throat and stared down at the bug, struggling not to cry. "Foaly, no, I can't. Not like this; it needs to be face to face. Can't you get me a shuttle or something?"

No. None are in working order; at least, none here at the Haven. Holly, tell me what happened! Is Opal alive? Did she open the second lock?

She shook her head. "No. Opal's dead. Artemis's plan worked. The second lock is closed permanently." Her voice cracked when she said his name but she forced herself to continue looking down at Foaly, resolutely keeping her voice steady.

There was a long pause after that, Foaly clearly struggling to convey his excitement in nothing but a text message. Finally, her ring buzzed again.

BY! THE! GODS! HOLLY! YOU DID IT!

She shook her head. "No. It wasn't me. It was all Artemis." Her voice nearly broke when she said his name again and she lowered her head, turning away from the bug so Foaly wouldn't see her tears. Her ring buzzed a few seconds later.

You helped him, Holly! Why the long face? Everyone's alive! You did it!

She resisted the urge to glare or yell at him at the anger and guilt his words caused. Foaly didn't know the truth. "Foaly, no. Artemis was the one who tricked Opal with the clone. He was inside the second lock's spell when it closed."

Yeah, and you helped him! Don't try and put this all off on Artemis. You're practically a hero, Holly!

"You don't understand, Foaly! The second lock, it… it… it… Artemis was inside the spell!"

She could practically see Foaly shrug and roll his eyes as he texted her back. So? If the stories are true, the spell would only affect fairies. All he'd have to do is just walk out of the spell's reach and he'd be fine.

Holly turned back to stare down at the bug, allowing her tears to spill over as she simply covered her fairy eye with her hand, so only her blue human eye was visible. Tears trickled out of it and, for several seconds, nothing happened. Finally, Foaly sent her another message.

Gods. His fairy eye.

She nodded.

You're not telling me what I think you are, Holly? Please tell me you're not saying that he's dead.

Holly nodded again. "No back up plan. No anything. He's gone, Foaly. Just smiled at me and then he was gone."

Foaly didn't message her again for several more minutes, probably struggling to digest the news. Artemis and Foaly had become friends over the years, even if their relationship had begun through rivalry to prove which one was the smartest. They had worked together, if somewhat grudgingly, to save the Haven and had bonded over the common enemy of Opal Koboi. Artemis, perhaps, was friends with more creatures hidden underground than he was with humans. She wasn't going to be the only fairy hit hard by his death.

She didn't know how long she had been sitting there in silence when her ring buzzed again with three simple words.

I'm so sorry.

Holly nodded at the bug. "So am I."

I'll make getting you down from there a top priority.

"No, don't. I'm sure the city is a disaster and needs more help than I do. Just get a shuttle up here when you can. I have enough magic left to shield if I need to."

Holly, all my technicians have been trying to piece together a shuttle to get an LEP attack squadron to the surface to take care of Opal. Now that she's dead, she is no longer a priority. Yes, the city is a wreck, but the explosions have stopped. As a valued member of the LEP and my friend, you are more important than whatever those technicians could be working on otherwise. You are sure she's dead, Holly? Opal's escaped from a coma and the most secure prison on the planet. Are you sure this isn't just another trick?

"She's dead, Foaly. I watched Oro slit her throat and I saw black magic eat through her skull. She's dead for good this time. As is Nopal. There's no chance of her coming back."

Did you say Oro? The old hero from the Battle of Taillte?

Holly shrugged weakly. "The Berserkers. It's a long story, Foaly. I'm not going to tell it via text message."

Of course. Holly, the shuttle will be headed your way in no longer than half an hour. I'm going to be in Police Plaza trying to fix this mess. Find me when you reach the Haven. I'm sorry about Artemis.


Foaly shut the display of his camera off, leaning over on his desk and letting out a deep, shuddering breath. He could not grieve now. The Haven was in the middle of a disaster and he wasn't just any old centaur; he had a job to do.

He took a step towards the door, then stopped as his knees almost buckled. He could still see the grief in Holly's gaze, the tears sparkling in her mismatched eyes, and the guilt already on her mind. He'd just found out his friend was dead. He could permit himself at least a minute of sorrow.

After a few shaking breaths, Foaly had to swallow the lump in his throat and push the rest of his emotions back to be dealt with later. The entirety of the Haven was terrified right now, and if he could bring them the news that Opal Koboi was dead, then her blow on the underground world would be softened- though nothing would erase the dead bodies that were only piling up higher in the streets the more time that passed.

So Foaly finally walked out of his Operations Booth to find Commander Kelp walking briskly down the hallway, speaking urgently with an elf. Foaly hurried after him. "Commander!"

Kelp glanced over his shoulder, then kept walking, gesturing for Foaly to come with him. "I'm about to do an emergency broadcast. Everyone who still has service and a screen will see it- so unless what you have to say is so important it needs to be heard by the entirety of the People, then you should get back to work."

"Actually, it is that important."

Kelp spun around, his eyes narrow. He appraised for Foaly for a second, then told the other elf to get lost and continued walking, this time with Foaly. "Talk to me."

"I just got in contact with Holly, on the surface. Opal Koboi was trying to open the Berserker Gate."

Kelp's eyes widened in shock, and he turned to stare at Foaly- even the hardened LEP commander was horrified at the thought. "Oh, gods. She didn't, did she? I thought the thing was just a myth, anyways! A bedtime story we tell to our kids at night!"

"It turns out there's far more truth to that story than we all thought. I don't know how she found it, but she did. Opal opened the first lock... and tried to open the second." Foaly continued to speak, even as Kelp blanched, terror coloring his eyes along with a horrified gasp. "Don't worry. Artemis Fowl managed to close the second lock and Opal Koboi has been killed. Holly was with him; she helped him and she's fine. At the moment, she's stranded on the surface, but she'll be on her way back as soon as the shuttle is up and running."

Kelp shook his head, running a hand through his short hair and closing his eyes. "D'Arvit. The Berserker Gate? Gods, what happened up there? It must be one hell of a story."

Foaly shrugged. "I'm sure it is. I don't know it. I got a message from Artemis a few hours ago and just had a short conversation with Holly. That's it. But, come on, Commander. I'm sure rumors have spread like wildfire about this entire mess. It'll do some good for people to know what actually happened."

Kelp hesitated, looking the centaur over for a few moments before groaning and nodding. "Fine. Just don't get too wrapped up explaining the technical aspects of this disaster. You can tell them everything we know so far- which, I'll admit, isn't much."

"Thank you, Commander. Do we have an estimate on how many fairies this message will reach?"

"That's your department, Foaly. An estimate? Are you kidding me? All I know is that this is the worst disaster since we moved underground and that any fairy who isn't dead is lucky to be alive!"

Foaly nodded in agreement. In the space of twelve hours, Opal Koboi had nearly killed off every last human on the planet and probably halved the population of the fairy's- not to mention bringing the entire world back to the Stone Age. This was, without contest, the most devastating catastrophe the world had ever seen.

They finally walked out of LEP headquarters, where a large crowd of fairies had gathered in anticipation for some answers. At the sign of the LEP commander, the fairies started shouting up at them question after question after question, the voices blending together so it was impossible to discern a single word. Kelp gestured for Foaly to go first and he stepped up to the old fashioned microphone, turning to face the elf with an ancient camera and yelling for silence.

The crowd finally quieted down, allowing Foaly to speak. He swallowed nervously, staring into the eyes of a thousand desperate and hurt fairies who were caught up in the worst catastrophe of their lives. "My name is Foaly. I'm a representative of the Lower Elements Police. To any fairies out there who are able to watch this, one person is responsible for what has happened here, and in the human world, as well- if there is even anyone who cares about that watching this. The fairy responsible is Opal Koboi."

There was a mummer in the crowd standing outside LEP, but they were otherwise quiet, too desperate to hear the rest of this story to create a din at the new information. Foaly continued.

"The following information has been kept secret until now, but, in present circumstances, there is no longer any reason to have it classified. About a year ago, an Opal Koboi from nine years ago came into the present through time travel. We did everything in our power to capture her, but she disappeared in a rock slide. Her body was never recovered, so she became missing and presumed dead- she was, of course, actually alive. We don't know how but, somehow, the present Opal Koboi became aware of her presence and arranged to have her killed. The younger Opal's death resulted in every single object she created or influenced exploding- you may think this is skeptical, but there is no other explanation for what has happened. Of course, this would include every item produced, invented, or paid for by Koboi labs in the past nine years, which current estimates have put at at least seventy percent of all technology underground.

"This also resulted in the older Opal Koboi escaping from Atlantis prison. She journeyed to the surface and proceeded to open the Berserker Gate."

This time, there was more than a murmur. Fairies shook their heads skeptically and muttered to each other under their breaths, rolling their eyes and saying that it was all a cover up. Foaly continued talking, regardless.

"Yes, I am aware it is commonly viewed to be nothing but a myth- I believed that myself. Nevertheless, Opal Koboi managed to open the first lock and tried to open the second. Before all you radical nutcases out there start cheering for the destruction of the Mud People, she did not succeed. LEP Captain Holly Short and humans Butler and Artemis Fowl interceded and managed to close the second lock permanently. Opal Koboi was killed in the process and Holly Short is alive and well. Unfortunately, the events of that night also resulted in… also resulted in… the death of Artemis Fowl." Foaly cleared his throat and forced himself to remain calm. Artemis Fowl was known among the majority of fairies as the monstrous Mud Boy who had kidnapped a fairy and outsmarted the LEP, then recently shown up once more at Dr. Argon's clinic after losing his mind. His actions over the previous years had been mostly part of classified operations and had been kept quiet. It wasn't likely his death wold be mourned much by the fairy population, but that didn't mean he shouldn't report it. Artemis deserved to be remembered for his sacrifice.

Commander Kelp took over then, giving instructions for everybody to remain calm and stay where they were. He went on about rationing food and how all travel to the surface was suspended until further notice and that the LEP was doing everything they could to help. Foaly quickly left, heading back into LEP headquarters. He had promised Holly he would be in Police Plaza and that was where he intended to stay- not to mention that he still had work to do. His friend was dead, but that meant nothing in the great scheme of things. He still had responsibilities to take care of.


"He was at the tower, working on something. I don't know what. The laptop exploded. Something must have ruptured his heart, because by the time I got to him, he was gone." Butler shook his head dismally, his huge hands forming fists so tight that it hurt. "I'm sorry."

Angeline Fowl narrowed her eyes while Artemis Sr buried his head in his hands. Butler found himself unable to meet Angeline's suspicious glare, so he instead focused on his feet, waiting for the painful questions he knew would come.

Artemis's father took several long, agonizingly slow seconds to himself before he raised his head, a hand still over his mouth. He asked in a muffled voice, "If he had still been at that university when everything crashed… would he have… would he still…"

Butler paused. Artemis Sr had been under the impression that Artemis had been studying at a university for the past six months, rather than underground recovering from Atlantis Complex. He didn't know how Dr. Argon's clinic had fared, but it didn't matter. Even if he had still been in the midst of his recovery, the fairies would have pulled him out to deal with the Opal situation. He would still be dead.

He lied once again- something he was still frightfully accustomed to when it came to Artemis's parents and the fairies. "No. I got in contact with the school after it happened. The entire place was destroyed- there were no survivors."

Artemis Sr kept his face hidden for several more seconds, his body wracked with tremors, then shook his head and got to his feet. "Excuse me," he muttered, hurrying from the room and leaving Butler behind with Angeline. She turned to him, her teary eyes sharp and focused.

"What really happened, Butler?"

He winced. "How did you-"

"The world almost ended last night. The manor looks like a scene from a horror movie. Artemis was supposed to be underground. Take your pick, Butler."

Sighing, he looked up at her and shook his head. Holly had told him to tell her the truth, and she deserved nothing less. "You're right," he admitted. "Fairies were involved. All the explosions were caused by the fairy who possessed you. Considering what happened underground, we're lucky. Humanity could have-"

"Butler, what happened to my son?"

Butler paused. It was clear that Angeline wasn't interested in anything but how Artemis had died... not that he blamed her. The story of last night's events was long and confusing and he honestly didn't have the willpower to explain it when his charge was dead. Like Angeline, all that mattered to him right now was Artemis.

"…Mrs. Fowl, the fairy who possessed you was here last night. Artemis figured it out and came up to the surface with Holly and me. Opal opened this ancient gate from an old battle between humans and fairies that happened here ten thousand years ago. She unlocked these ancient fairy warriors that possessed animals, the Chinese mummies, skeletons… Juliet… and the twins."

At her look of horror, Butler laid a hand on her shoulder and nodded. "I know. But don't worry. They're all fine and don't remember a thing. Myles even managed to throw off the spirit possessing him long enough for us to save him. Anyway, Holly protected us from being possessed and we escaped, then found out the rest of Opal's plan. There was a second lock. If she opened it, every human on earth would be killed."

Angeline leaned back against the couch, a hand over her mouth, her slim frame trembling. She closed her eyes for a long moment, then looked back at Butler and nodded, signaling for him to continue. Somehow, the news that, by all rights, she herself and every human should be dead seemed less important in the wake of her son's death, but it was still a horrifying reality.

"We had until dawn to stop her. We tried as hard as we could, but she had planned for everything and we just couldn't get close enough to her. I don't know everything that happened; she knocked me unconscious. When I came to, I was alone. I ran to Artemis's study and found Holly- she was unconscious, too, and there was no sign of Artemis. I woke her up and she ran to find him… I'm so sorry, Mrs. Fowl. I know that you pay me to protect him, and that I failed you again. I couldn't stop him from carrying out his plan, and by the time we reached him, it was too late."

Angeline shook her head desperately, still too weak to stand. Tears spilled down her cheeks as she lowered her head, her breath coming in short, shuddering gasps. "I don't understand! What happened to him? How did he die?"

"He willingly went to Opal and gave himself up. He tricked her, though. Artemis managed to trick her and he was able to stop her from opening the second lock and closed it permanently himself. Opal was killed in the process… but the gate was enchanted to take all fairy souls within its reach into the afterlife, and it saw Artemis as a fairy because of his fairy eye. I'm so sorry, Mrs. Fowl. By the time we reached him, it was too late, and he knew it would be. Artemis knew we wouldn't be able to save him and he went anyway. He knew that he didn't even have a chance."

Angeline kept silent, forcing her sobs to be quiet and internal. She rose on shaky legs and began slowly pacing around the room, her body trembling violently, her face bleached of all color. When she finally turned to face him, it was with the most devastated expression that he had ever seen in his life. Tears trickled down her cheeks, her question coming out as a painful gasp. "He died… for… us?"

Butler could do nothing more than nod, too overcome with emotion to speak. Finally, he fell back on denial, raising his head and desperately speaking up, the tone of his voice more like begging and pleading than anything else. "Mrs. Fowl, this isn't the first time people thought he was dead. When he disappeared for three years, you all thought he was dead, but he wasn't. He could be alive now-"

"I saw his body! There was no pulse, Butler! There was nothing!" She buried her face in her hands and whirled around, hiding her expression with her hair and letting out a low, nearly inaudible cry. "He died, and you dare stand there and try and give me some kind of hope? He's not coming back! He's gone!"

She sobbed harder for one awful moment before turning and running from the room, leaving Butler alone. He covered his face in his hands and hunched over, fighting the raging emotions inside of him. Guilt, guilt, guilt, sorrow, anger, guilt again. This was his fault.

Artemis had told him not to feel this way. Artemis had told him that this wasn't his fault and that he shouldn't feel guilty.

"Well, that's too bad, Artemis," he muttered under his breath. "You can tell me it's not my fault and talk until you're blue in the face; when it comes down to it, it was my job to stop things like this from happening." I shouldn't have let this happen. I'm so sorry.

He dismally rose and left the room himself. It didn't matter what his parents thought. They hadn't seen first hand what Artemis could accomplish. Surely, there must be some back up plan. He refused to believe that this was the end of Artemis Fowl.