This chapter is actually long. W00t.
~*~
Artemis landed on a solid surface. His eyes flickered open; the floor beneath him was pure white, stretching on forever.
In fact, the whole world around him was white; a never ending sea of bland color. There was no ceiling or walls; just whiteness.
Artemis searched around, scanning the odd dimension for a sign of… anything. Seconds (or hours- he wasn't sure) later, Holly appeared beside him, breathing heavily.
"Holly, what is this place?" Artemis asked. Holly squinted into the distance.
"This is where it begins; soon, Esperanza will switch the scenery, and we will be transported into either your worst memories, or an interpretation of your worst fears," Holly said, almost casually. "It will start out slow, but then the memories and experiences will flash by in the blink of an eye, so you can think of nothing but the worst."
Artemis nodded curtly, his mouth pressed into a thin line. This truly was unlike anything he'd ever experienced. Holly watched him anxiously.
"I'll be here," she reminded him. "I'll be right here the entire time, no matter what."
"You don't know how much that helps," Artemis said quietly. Holly stared at him, confused.
"I don't understand," she said slowly. Artemis bowed his head.
"I love you, Holly. I love you more than anything else in the world, and I don't deserve you, not after all I've done to you. I had to lie, to pretend; I have so many enemies, Holly, it would never be safe. Besides, it's forbidden, unthinkable. But now, I don't have to worry about any of that; our time is limited, and I want to spend my last hours with you. If you no longer feel… that way about me, I'll understand. I've been horrible to you."
"Artemis, you could murder my friends, expose the fairies, and sell me on E-Bay, but I'd still love you," Holly said, grinning. Artemis half laughed his mind clear of everything but the fact that Holly wanted him.
"As cute as that was," Esperanza's voice boomed overhead, "Can we please move on?"
The gypsy's piercing voice filled the white world, pounding into Artemis's eardrums. He instinctively wrapped an arm around Holly's waist, glancing feverishly around at the blinding nothingness.
Suddenly, without warning, the world changed. Artemis was standing on a mahogany floor, a chandelier hanging overhead; Fowl Manor.
"The memories will not be the same," Holly whispered. "They'll be tampered with. I'll be here the entire time; we're the only things that are real. Nothing here can hurt you."
"Are you sure about that?" Esperanza's voice hissed in their ears. Holly's eyes widened.
And Holly was snatched away from Artemis, her arm ripped from Artemis's back. The elf was thrown across the room, slamming into the wall. Her head was thrown back, her lips parting in a small gasp.
"I-it's fine," Holly gasped, "Artemis, it's fine, just look away, run!"
But Artemis couldn't. His feet were glued to the floor, his eyes glued to Holly. An invisible force seemed to manipulate the elf, a puppeteer playing with his puppet. She was in pain, her eyes wide with fear.
Someone walked out of the shadows; a small, pale boy with raven black hair.
It was ten year old Artemis.
The boy clutched a dagger in his hand; his eyes were alight with black fire. Holly watched him draw closer.
"This isn't happening!" Holly shouted to the real Artemis. "Don't worry, Artemis, nothing can hurt you!"
"What about you?" Artemis shouted, trying desperately to move even an inch.
"I- I don't know," Holly admitted. "But, Artemis, I'll be fine as soon as we're free of this place. Know that!"
The young Artemis placed a foot on Holly's leg, disgusted. "Creatures like you must be wiped from this earth." He turned, smiling evilly at his older self, the real Artemis. "Would you like to do the honors?"
And suddenly, against his will, Artemis began walking towards Holly and his evil, younger self. "NO!" he screamed, trying to run. Holly's breathing became shallow.
The young Artemis handed the pointed dagger to his older self; the real Artemis yelled as his arm raised above his head, clutching the dagger so hard his knuckles turned white.
"You can fight it," Holly whispered. "I could, I learned how. This is a bad dream, that's all. Control your thoughts."
But Artemis couldn't. His younger self disappeared; it was just him and Holly, alone in the dream manor.
He grabbed Holly's shoulder, pulling her upright.
"I'm sorry!" he cried. "I'm so sorry, Holly."
And his hand drove the dagger into Holly's chest, slamming the elf into the wall. She gasped, grabbing at the hilt, pulling the bloody tool from her body. A dark wound was visible to the right of Holly's shoulder; blood seeped over her clothes, onto the clean floors of Fowl Manor. Her breathing slowed.
"No, no, Holly, no!" Artemis yelled, regaining control of his limbs. The world melted into white nothingness again, leaving just him and Holly.
"Not… your… fault," Holly murmured, her eyes closed. "Remember… just… a… bad… dream."
"Please, stay with me," Artemis whispered. Holly managed to shake her head.
"I can't," she said weakly. "Remember, I'm gone, and anyone who looks like me is just a figment of your imagination. Be… safe."
And she disappeared, leaving Artemis alone in the white world.
Meanwhile, Holly regained consciousness in the cave. Esperanza was smiling expectantly.
"Well? Is he having fun?" she asked eagerly. Holly sighed.
"Oh, you can go back in," the gypsy said, as though this was a wanted privilege. "But he can't know you're there."
And Holly was once again transported into Artemis's slice of hell, watching sadly as Artemis relived his worst experiences, all the while calling for his elfin friend. She longed to reach out for him, to touch him, to tell him everything was all right. But she was a phantom; an invisible guardian angel.
~*~
"Holly," Artemis sighed through gritted teeth. He tried to tell himself she was fine; but the memory of puncturing her chest with the blasted dagger was too real.
"Artemis?"
Holly's voice rang through the nothingness, filling Artemis's ears. He leapt to his feet, turning to find Holly, unscathed.
"Oh, Artemis, I'm so glad you're all right," Holly breathed, throwing her arms around Artemis's neck. She took his face in her hands, her eyes sparkling.
"Holly… how?" was all Artemis could say. The elf laughed.
"It's a dream, Artemis. I can do whatever I want."
And she brought his lips to hers, pressing herself against him until every line of their bodies seemed to connect.
But as Artemis thrived in the newfound bliss, Holly's last words before she had disappeared rang through his mind.
Remember, I'm gone, and anyone who looks like me is just a figment of your imagination.
The angel in his arms was not Holly; she was a fake, a clone.
He pulled away, disgusted, forcing the fake Holly away from him. But the girl standing in front of him was not Holly. She was suddenly Minerva, dressed in a sparkling cocktail dress, her blonde curls cascading down her back.
"Surprise," Minerva whispered, wrapping her arms around Artemis's neck. Her lips found his once again, and the kiss was poison to Artemis. Her mouth burned like acid against his; he tried to scream, to pull away, but could not move a muscle.
"Oh, don't fight it," Minerva said airily. "It was meant to be, silly."
And her lips were at his neck, and he was screaming in pain, screaming for Holly. Minerva's touch burned like fire, and they were so very, very close together, every part of him was ablaze with the horrible pain. This wasn't a memory, or even a fear of his; funnily enough, he had never spent even a second worrying about Minerva scalding his flesh with hers. It made absolutely no sense.
And then the pain was gone. Artemis opened his watering eyes to find Minerva a foot away from him, smiling evilly.
"I thought nothing could hurt me in this dream world?" Artemis murmured, moving backwards slightly as Minerva took a step forward.
"Oh, no, we can hurt you as much as we like," Minerva said brightly, seeming to relish the idea. "Holly simply meant that once you 'wake up', all the pain will be gone."
And with that, Minerva walked off into the white distance, becoming smaller and smaller until she completely disappeared. Artemis stood rigid, waiting. Though the pain had been real enough, so far the scenario had not been completely devastatingly horrible as Holly had described. Maybe it would get worse?
And, as he had expected, colors and objects appeared around him. The change from nothing to everything was so blindingly bright, Artemis covered his eyes with the back of a hand to shield himself from the unbearable color.
When his eyes had adjusted, Artemis took in the scenery. He was standing in the Extinctionists' 'Courtroom', wearing a tuxedo and fake beard. He stood beside Holly, cuffed to a baby chair.
"I think they're coming off," he grunted, pretending to pull Holly's 'fake' pointed ear from her head. He suddenly realized with a sinking feeling in his stomach that his plan would not work.
He had touched the adhesive on his fake ear mold too quickly; instead of a cone-like figure, it now just looked like a crumpled bandage. Holly stared up at him, terrified.
"Got it!" he shouted, hoping the nitwit Extinctionists would buy the act. Unfortunately, they didn't.
"That's not an ear!" Kronski screamed. "That's a fake! You're a fake! But guess who's not a fake, my fellow Extinctionists?"
Here, he paused for dramatic effect. Half the audience was glaring daggers at Artemis, the other half waiting with bated breath for Kronski's concluding sentence.
"My fairy! My fairy isn't a fake at all!" Damon said triumphantly. The audience roared its approval, with many shouts of, "To the pit!" "Destroy the vermin!" and "Kill the fairy!"
One voice cut through the others, a shrill, piercing sound full of anger. "I say with throw both of them into the pit! Humans who protect animals are no better than the beasts!"
Damon seemed to agree. He grabbed Holly from her baby chair, unchaining her to free her limbs. She denied the crazed man the pleasure of seeing her scream for mercy, making sure to keep her features composed.
"Farewell, you little creep!" Damon hissed, digging his fingers into Holly's arms. As she descended into the pit, Holly called Artemis's name.
"Fowl!" she shouted, her eyes meeting his. Artemis himself had been tackled by fifty angry members, and could just see Holly's face through the arms pinning him down. Their eyes locked, mismatched blue and hazel to mismatched blue and hazel.
And then she was enveloped by the fake flames, her life in the hands of Opal Koboi.
As Artemis was thrown into the pit after his elfin friend, the world disintegrated. Everything melted away, forming a new scene. Artemis stood shakily, glancing around at his surroundings.
At first, all he noticed was white. Everywhere he looked, all Artemis could see was the bland, shapeless color, stretching on into infinity. But then the white began to take shape; it became clumped and soft, forming hills and slopes.
He was in the Arctic, standing atop a moving train.
Artemis ran to the edge of the train, fully prepared to jump; and yet, he ran into an invisible barrier, preventing him to go any further.
It was like a computer game. You cannot walk into places that are unimportant to the storyline; if you are set on a mission, you must complete it. Artemis could not even move backwards; the invisible barrier followed him wherever he went, blocking off the places he had been before.
Sighing, Artemis succumbed to his immediate destiny, and walked carelessly along the train, hopping inside at the appropriate spot.
Artemis reached into his pocket, and found yet another vile of dwarf rock polish. Grimacing, he poured the lot of it on the door, watching fearfully as the dangerous stuff ate through the metal.
And, suddenly, it was like he was watching a movie of his own actions. He was watching himself pour the dwarf rock polish on the door, and yet was not doing anything of the sorts.
It was like a computer game once again; when you have completed your mission, you see a very short animated film telling what happened next.
Artemis watched the metal melt away, revealing a slightly younger Holly, clinging to the train with a pained grimace on her face.
Artemis tried to reach for her, but remembered that he was simply watching this movie, not acting in it. He saw the young version of himself take Holly's hands, pulling her inside the train; and, luckily, remembering to look away when Holly's finger was sliced from her hand by the remainders of the large train door.
Holly yelled for a fraction of a second before collapsing on top of the young Artemis, blue sparks circling the boy's arm. Artemis watched this helplessly, wanting desperately to pull the elf off of the floor, to let her magic heal the awful wound on her hand instead of pamper the young Artemis Fowl further. He saw the young version of himself smile in his sleep, enjoying the magical treatment Holly so desperately needed.
Minutes later, Commander Julius Root made his way inside the train; Artemis never actually saw Root come into the train, so the memory was fuzzy.
The Commander looked at the two unconscious figures in horror, quickly pulling Holly from Artemis's chest. Seconds later the young Artemis awoke, stretching and yawning.
The scene skipped ahead to when the four travelers had departed from the train, searching desperately for a sliver of earth to bury Holly's secret acorn. Artemis, watching the scenario, was surprised when Commander Root found the earth he had been looking for. Maybe this memory wasn't tampered with at all.
"Yes!" The Commander crowed. "Earth!"
He hurriedly placed Holly's dismembered finger back to its original place, thrusting the taped hand deep into the cold soil. The travelers waited, watching Holly's still form anxiously.
Ten seconds. Fifteen. Twenty. Nothing.
Artemis watched the scene, breathing rhythmically to stop hyperventilation. He knew what was coming.
"It didn't take," Root said in a toneless voice. "Her career is over."
Holly seemed to be coming to; she slowly sat up, groaning softly. She wiped a snowflake from her cheek with a hand, shaking her head to clear the dizziness.
"What happened?" she asked, but soon enough, her eyes fell upon her own disfigured hand. She cried out, scrambling to her feet.
But before the scene could continue further, Artemis was thrown forcefully from the Arctic, landing painfully in a different scene entirely.
Artemis took in his surroundings; he was in his mother's bedroom, holding Jayjay the Silky Sifaka Lemur.
"Arty, let me hold him," his mother said, her voice weak and cracked. Sympathizing, Artemis handed the lemur to his dying mother.
"Just for a minute, mother," Artemis reminded her. "We really must--,"
His mother sprang from her bed, her eyes crazed. "Stupid boy! I thought you were supposed to be a genius."
And Opal transformed into Miss Book, letting the still form of Angeline Fowl crumple to the floor. Artemis yelled out, running to his mother's side. He heard the sickening cries of Jayjay behind him, but no longer cared for the animal. He cared only for his mother.
Artemis scooped up Mrs. Fowl's limp frame. Her head lolled to the side, her lips parted in a final sigh. Angeline's pulse became fainter and fainter by the second, until Artemis could feel nothing at all.
Before Artemis could mourn the loss of his mother, the scene changed again; Mrs. Fowl disintegrated in his arms until she had disappeared completely.
The scenes are speeding up, Artemis thought. Does this mean the nightmare shall end soon?
The Temple of Artemis grew before Artemis Fowl's eyes; one by one, trolls popped up around him, along with a bending, gushing river.
"Climb, Artemis!" Holly hissed from behind him. And Artemis did, scaling the Temple replica as fast as he could. The trolls howled below him, craving fresh meat.
Artemis reached the top, and lay there panting as Holly skipped over the last few rungs.
A troll appeared on the rooftop, apparently a bit more skilled than his comrades. It howled angrily at the two unlikely companions, blundering blindly towards them. Artemis whimpered, hurtling to the other side of the fairly small roof.
"I think we might be able to jump," Holly said hopefully. "The river will buy us at least fifteen minutes."
But before they could carry out this plan, the troll on the roof jumped them. Artemis yelled in terror, curling into a ball, overcome by panic. Luckily, the troll overshot his target; he plummeted off the side, right over the elf and human's heads.
There were at least ten trolls beneath them at this point, all waiting by the river for their prey. These trolls were smarter than the actual ones Artemis had faced all those years ago. They had no chance. Unless…
A totally evil and cold-hearted thought pierced through the haze of terror clouding Artemis's head. The trolls needed a meal; who said the meal had to be him?
Artemis glanced slyly at the elf sitting next to him. Even at the age of fourteen, it was probable Artemis could overpower her. Sure, Holly was physically fit and well trained, but she was tired, stressed, and Artemis had the element of surprise on his hand.
It was all over in a second. Artemis's foot connected with Holly's back, kicking the air from her lungs. She gasped, losing her balance. Holly grabbed the smooth side of the fake Temple, her fingers desperately searching for an indent to hold onto.
"Artemis," Holly gasped. "Please, help me."
And Artemis had a flashback of a movie he had been forced to watch at the age of five; The Lion King. One scene in particular came to mind; when Mufasa was holding on to the side of a crumbling cliff, losing his grip, his brother Scar ignored his pleas and made the lion fall to his death; trampled by a herd of enraged animals.
But it was a fight for survival, so Artemis got to his feet and calmly pressed the toe of his boot on Holly's left hand. She cried out in pain, but would not let go.
Artemis stepped on Holly's hand again, and this time the pain loosened Holly's grip. She slipped from the Temple, falling into the mass of claws and fur that was ten ravenous trolls.
And the scene changed again. Artemis was back in the white world, trying to shake the image of the troll's last meal from his mind.
Esperanza's voice filled Artemis's ears. "Ignorant boy! Don't the scenes bother you at all?"
She was exasperated, annoyed. Artemis liked it.
"The scenes make no sense and are put together clumsily," he said calmly. Esperanza hissed; the sound was like a thousand vipers.
"You're right, I guess," she admitted. "I was just taking random guesses at what might affect you the most. I could always just kill you," she mused, "Then you'd be reunited with your animal friend."
Animal friend? Artemis did not know what the Gypsy meant by this. After a few moments, he realized who she meant; what were elves to Extinctionists except smart animals?
"You didn't kill Holly," Artemis murmured. He was mostly trying to convince himself this. "You need her."
"For what?"
Artemis was silent. Esperanza became angry again.
"Oh, doesn't anything get to you? The oversized doll wasn't this hard to break."
Artemis still held his tongue, reluctant to speak with the bodiless voice anymore.
"Your mind is so… different," Esperanza fumed. "It's like an ocean; I can explore what I think is the depths of your subconscious, but there's still miles more of information that I haven't even seen yet. So many nooks and crannies I will never be able to see; you're a smart one."
"I can't believe it!" Artemis exclaimed. "You have every bit of knowledge you need, you have my mind on a silver platter, and you can't torture me properly because you can't figure it out?"
"And here I thought you'd be pleased by the fact I can't drive you insane," Esperanza's voice mumbled. Artemis snorted.
"Yes, I am rather glad I'm not insane," he said through gritted teeth, "but I just find it impossible to believe that you're so stupid you can't even—,"
And an invisible force smacked into Artemis's chest, throwing him forever backwards into the never ending nothingness.
"I HAAATE YOU!" Esperanza screamed, and the memory of Opal Koboi saying the same thing flashed in front of Artemis's eyes. This seemed to unlock hidden memories; Opal, dive bombing Briar Cudgeon with her Hoverboy chair; Opal, speaking through the fairy communicator while Artemis, Holly, and Mulch wiggled truffles in front of her face; Opal, her beautiful features distorted as she clutched Professor Primate in her hand, realizing she had been tricked.
And the memory of Holly and Mulch unlocked even more memories; Esperanza had found the access key to Artemis's mind.
"Gotcha," she said quietly. Artemis's stomach seemed to drop fifty stories. He always kept his mind so closed up, even to himself, only pulling up the memories he absolutely needed. No one thought like him this way; in the time tunnel, everyone else's mind had been an open book. Not his.
But through one memory, Esperanza had dug deeper and deeper until no secret was safe.