"I wonder if he'll make it."
"I don't know, but it was a good thing he was running hot, otherwise the matter wouldn't have been in doubt."
"Who did this?"
The medics were whispering as Root's inert body was carried away. Foaly was on the ground, sobbing quietly, his carrot cake lying on the plasma tiles, forgotten. His precious computers were destroyed, all destroyed.
Trouble, who was interim Commander, nudged Foaly's body gently. "It's okay, Foaly.
I'm sure you can rebuild it. You are a genius. Come on, pull yourself together, that's a good man," he coaxed.
Foaly pulled a deep, steadying breath, rubbed his red eyes and asked, "Is Julius okay?"
"The medic said he has a fifty-fifty chance of making it. But even if he does make it, he'll be out for a week at least."
Foaly suddenly burst out bawling again.
"What's wrong, Foaly?" Asked Trouble, worried.
"Root has a fifty-fifty chance of making it. My computer has a zero-hundred chance," Foaly choked out through his tears. The loss of his computers had really hit him hard.
"Any idea who would do this? And why?" Questioned Trouble.
Foaly suddenly stood up straight. He rummaged through the charred CDs. "Just as I thought. A few key CDs are missing," Foaly said grimly. "This was a theft."
Trouble frowned. "Know of any fairies who would want to steal our technology?" he enquired.
"No. But I do know of one Mud Man who would," Foaly continued, his eyes narrow slits.
Trouble gasped. "Artemis Fowl?"
Foaly nodded. "But this is a new low, even for him. At worst he would have just taken the CDs and stunned Root. But instead, he nearly killed Root and torched the place."
"How could he have gotten to Haven?"
"He doesn't need to. All he needs is to bribe one fairy and that's that." Foaly gasped suddenly. "Holly! Holly is there with that Mud Boy!"
"We need to get a Retrieval team to her, pronto!" Trouble stood up.
Foaly sighed. "We can't. Shuttles and chutes are down, no thanks to that Mud Boy. Maybe that's why Fowl torched our computers," he added.
Troubles shoulders sagged. "So she's… gone?"
"No, wait, she's still here. Her radio is still on the frequency, and she's still broadcasting loud and clear."
"Contact her," urged Trouble.
"Can do," replied Foaly grimly. "At least we still have our basic communications and weapons. I deliberately made those sections indestructible."
"Holly, can you hear me? We have a code red situation."
*
Holly was still in the dining room, throwing occasional glares at Artemis.
"Holly, can you hear me? We have a code red situation. I repeat, we have a-"
Holly quickly got up. "I'm full," she announced. She hurriedly made a way to an empty room.
"Foaly, what is it?" she hissed.
"Holly, is that you? Are you all right?"
She frowned. "Yes, why wouldn't I be all right?" she asked.
"Holly, Root has been assaulted and some fairy technology stolen." Foaly's voice broke. "And… and… the Ops room has been torched," he choked out, sounding on the verge of tears.
Holly gasped audibly. "Who would do this?" Holly asked grimly.
Foaly swallowed the lump in his throat. "Guess."
"Surely you don't mean Fowl?" Holly was stunned.
"Correct! You have won the grand prize," remarked Foaly, sarcastic even in his grief.
"Artemis wouldn't-" She stopped has soon as she remembered the mysterious phone call. "Would he?"
"All the evidence certainly seems to suggest so. Who else would want our technology?"
"So you're saying that Fowl may have done it?"
"Yes."
"I'll mesmerise him and get the truth," she vowed.
"No! Holly, you can't. Remember? Fowl has forbidden you to mesmerize him. Convenient, huh?" Foaly commented sardonically.
"I'm sure he's innocent! How about I ask his permission to mesmerize him as long as I don't erase his memories, and he can prove that he's-"
"And what if he's actually guilty? The moment you ask his permission to mesmerize him, he's going to know something is amiss. And what if he is guilty? Do you think he'll stand around if he thinks that we are going to capture him? What if he kills you, Holly?"
"But certainly Fowl wouldn't have done this… He helped us with the B'wa Kell, remember? He wouldn't kill me! He's not homicidal! Devious, cunning, yes, but he wouldn't kill anyone!" Holly protested.
" Holly, this time he wasn't fooling around. He, or a fairy he bribed, shot Root in the back with a Neutrino blaster, maximum setting. And don't forget, his personality may have changed after the mind wipe, and probably not for the better," Foaly reminded. "He warned us of the possibility himself."
"But he still wouldn't-"
"Holly, listen! We don't know how the mind-wipe has affected his personality. He could be a saint, or he could be a sinner, the fact is, we don't know! And we can't afford to take that chance!" Foaly yelled.
"So what do I do?" shouted Holly, frustrated.
"You will enlist his help in finding the culprit." Foaly ordered.
Holly was now extremely perplexed. "But-"
"You will enlist his help in finding the culprit. Throughout the mission, if there is any hint, any hint at all that he is indeed the guilty one, you will neutralize him and his cohorts immediately," Foaly said grimly. "We cannot risk him suspecting that we think he is guilty. Your life is at stake, Holly."
"Neutralize?" she asked slowly. "What do you mean?"
"What I mean, Holly, is to do what he did to Root and my computers. Do what we were supposed to do three years ago, with our bio-bomb. What I mean is to eliminate the threat to the People at once."
Holly was stunned. "But Artemis-"
"You have your orders, Captain. I will be tuned in at all times."
"Yes, Foaly," she said numbly. She pondered for a while. If the time came, would she exterminate Fowl, Butler, Juliet and maybe even Mulch? Could she? Duty or friendship? If you could even call it a friendship, she thought morosely. She couldn't imagine herself doing it. But then, you'll never know.
*
She sat back at the table slowly. She shot a look at Artemis. He was calmly shoveling apple crumble into his mouth. He didn't look like a murderer. Then again, murderers rarely do.
Was he the culprit? She wondered. She knew Fowl was no angel, but even he wouldn't have done something like this. Would he?
"Problems, Captain Short?" She jumped slightly in her chair.
"Wha… what makes you say that?"
Artemis raised an eyebrow. "You claimed to have satisfied your hunger, yet you return and settle at the dining table. You stare at me, which is really quite disconcerting, by the way. You also appear very shaken at something. The natural conclusion would be that you are facing a problem."
Holly decided to plunge right in. "Commander Root was just attacked by an unknown assailant and some fairy technology stolen. The Ops room was torched as well."
"Let me guess. I am a suspect?" Artemis deduced.
"No, no, not at all," Holly said hastily. A little too hastily.
Artemis raised his eyebrow, not entirely convinced. "Then why are you telling me this? The only other plausible reason, or excuse, is that you need my help."
"Yes," Holly admitted. "So… Will you help us?"
"Of course, Holly. How could I refuse?"
*
Holly had filled Artemis, Butler, Juliet and Mulch on the details. Artemis was presently sitting in his study alone with Butler.
"Holly has left to perform the Ritual," Butler informed Artemis.
"The good Captain suspects me," Artemis said abruptly.
"Excuse me, master Fowl?"
"Holly suspects me, and probably so do the rest of the People."
"What makes you say that, Artemis?"
He snorted. "It is evident. Her behavior after she excused herself from the table revealed as much. Besides, the phone call with one of my contacts in Interpol which she overheard previously would add impetus to her queries on my morality regarding the People and fuel her suspicion."
Butler frowned. "Then why is she asking for help with this mission if she thinks that we are guilty?"
Artemis smiled. "She only enlisted our aid as a convenience. The People need to keep an eye on us. And they cannot send a Retrieval team, as shuttle and chutes are down. She cannot mesmerize us to get the truth, as I have forbidden her to."
Butler frowned. "Then why don't you allow her to mesmerize you, then?"
"It is too late now. If I give her permission to do so, it would look highly suspicious and the fairies would suspect a trick, maybe even the contact lenses again, or worse. And we would have informed them that we know the suspect us if we pursue this course of action, and they may even terminate us on the spot to minimize risk to Holly and the People. Who knows what we would do if we actually were guilty and we know the LEP suspect us? No, their best chance lies in pretending to go along with us, and at the slightest evidence that we are the guilty party, Holly will attack us. She will have the element of surprise, and therefore victory will be more certain," Artemis told Butler grimly
"But we are innocent!" Protested Butler.
"Yes, but how are they to know that? I would certainly suspect myself if I was in their shoes." Artemis replied.
"So how are we going to convince Captain Short that we are innocent?" Butler asked, frowning.
Artemis looked thoughtful. "Our best course of action lies in finding the real culprit and therefore acquitting ourselves of all guilt."
Butler nodded. "That seems wise. Do we inform Juliet and Mulch?"
"Yes, and we shall inform them not to put on any suspicious behavior. Our lives may depend on it."
*
"How could Holly suspect us, after all we've been through!" Juliet protested loudly.
"Yeah! I may be a thief, but I'm no murderer!" Mulch chimed in.
"Quiet, the both of you. It is perfectly natural for us to be the prime suspects, considering our long history with the People, and not all of it good."
"But-" Juliet was interrupted by Artemis.
"Our only game plan is to convince Holly and the LEP through our actions. I have no doubt that our every move will be monitored by the People through Holly's iris cam and communications. Do not give her a reason to suspect us. In the meanwhile, we shall search for the genuine criminal."
The light dawned, albeit slowly, on Mulch's and Juliet's eyes.
"The onus is on us to exonerate ourselves beyond the faintest flicker of doubt. We shall strive to convince the fairies that my nefarious, perfidious schemes shall not be directed at them, and that they have no reason to bear me any rancor whatsoever," completed Artemis floridly. He was rather proud of it. Doubtless Mulch and Juliet were inspired by his eloquence.
The pair in question gaped at him.
Artemis rolled his eyes. "The Lord save me from ignoramuses with limited vocabulary," he mumbled to himself. "What I was trying to convey in the most eloquent possible way was that-" Artemis put on a feigned, exaggerated expression which was supposed to look idiotic, "We need to, like, make the fairies think that we, like, didn't do nothing," he said, his tone and expression conveying a world of sarcasm and mockery.
"Um… You had a double negative there, Artemis," Juliet said hesitantly.
"I was trying to mock your- Never mind, just let it go. So, do you understand?"
They nodded avidly. "Yes, Artemis," Mulch and Juliet said in unison.
"Now, lets go. We have a case to solve."
*
"Very well, Captain Short, Mulch Diggums and Juliet have consented to aid you in this matter," Artemis informed Holly.
"That's just as well. We need all the help we can get before we crack down this case. The chutes and shuttles are all down, we won't be getting any help anytime soon," Holly replied. "I sure hope we can catch this evil, twisted person," she said with heavy emphasis on evil and twisted. She cast a sidelong glance at his face. If she expected any hint of guilt or remorse to show on his face, she was sorely disappointed.
"Yes, so do I," was Artemis's ice-cool answer. Time to have a little fun, he thought. He grinned suddenly.
"Why are you grinning, Fowl?" She asked, her eyes narrowed with suspicion.
"No, it's nothing. It's just that in all our adventures, this is probably the first time the LEP is not treating me with suspicion. I am happy that they, and more importantly, you, have decided to trust me for once." His eyes twinkled mischievously as he watched Holly's face.
"I feel vindicated by this trust. It's like a great weight has been lifted of my shoulders," he added for good measure.
This time, it was Holly who couldn't quite keep the guilt of her face.
"What is the matter, Captain?" Artemis's eyes portrayed concern. "You don't look too well. Anything wrong?" Artemis inquired, holding back a self-satisfied smirk.
Holly did not answer, but brusquely answered, "Time is ticking, Fowl. Let's go." Holly walked off, leaving one very mirthful Artemis Fowl behind her.
Every cloud had its silver lining.
*
"I did as you said, Felix," the sprite said laconically.
"Good, very well. The gold I promised you is in that suitcase."
The sprite eagerly went to the shiny black suitcase, avarice glinting in his clear blue eyes. He opened it.
"Boom. Game over," remarked the human as the suitcase blew up in the sprite's face. Scratch another fairy, he thought. Oh well. They were expendable. He smiled. This technology would be worth a bundle. He rubbed his hands in glee.
It was really sheer luck that he had encountered the existence of the fairies. An elf, probably a convict, had one day made his way to Felix's house and had tried to bargain for asylum. He had, seizing the day, captured the fairy and pumped truth serum into him, gaining all their innermost secrets, and therefore allowing him to take advantage of the fairies.
He prided himself that he was the only human to know about them. He sighed. Unfortunately, that elf had died, due to the copious amounts of sodium pentathol. Apparently fairy cells were not made to withstand an excess of this chemical. A pity, really, it was quite a waste.
After discovering all there was to know about them, he had disposed of the body quietly. Luckily, due to his enterprising nature, he then had made efforts to contact other members of its (he didn't think of them as people) kind, using technology found on the late elf. Many had come, especially with the promise of all that gold he had offered for a few services. This late sprite had only been one such fairy. He chuckled. For such an advanced race, they were really quite gullible. It apparently had never occurred to them that he might betray them. Fools. He still had a few more contacts, currently aboveground, in case he needed them, while the LEP were stranded underground, helpless to combat his moves.
Felix leaned back, contented. He had fairy technology now, and heaven help any whom stood in his way. If there were any, that is. And who would ever discover him? He took out a cigar from his drawer and lighted it, pausing only to let a derisive chuckle escape his lips.