He pressed the Intercom button.
"Let me in, Foaly." He said to the box.
"Are you armed?" came the centaur's voice.
"Come on, Foaly!"
"Protocol, raise your arms. Drop your pants and –"
"FOALY! Buzz me through!"
A buzz came and the door slid open. Foaly was laughing in his swivel chair.
"Ha ha. Very funny." Said Trouble, though he was smiling.
"I thought it was." Said Foaly, wiping tears of laughter from his face. "So you got the file for me?"
"Yeah. Right here." Trouble handed over the signed file. "Listen, Foaly, can I talk to you man to man?"
"Um...no." said Foaly quite convincingly. Then, he gave Trouble a disbelieving look. "How long have I known you? And you don't think you can talk to me!"
Another bit of history. Trouble and Foaly have known each other since their high school days, every since Trouble and his family moved to Haven. Trouble had been failing mathematics. His teacher said he needed to pass or he would have to repeat the year. Foaly who was in his class, offered to help and they had been best friends ever since.
Foaly close the booth's door.
"So, what is it?"
Trouble explained all about his love for Holly. He told Foaly about how he's loved her from the first day they met, he told him about how pretty and smart he thought she was, and he told him about his repetitive dreams. Surprisingly the centaur stayed quite through out the whole explanation. But when it was over, he couldn't resist taking a crack at his best friend.
"Has tough Trouble wouble gone all softie on me?" said Foaly in a mock baby voice. He laughed heartily at his own joke. Trouble did not look as happy. Foaly stopped laughing immediately at the look on Trouble's face. "I guess not." he mumbled.
"Foaly, I told you because I have to ask her out today. If I don't do it soon, she'll eventually find someone else. Verbil keeps going at her. So do half the other guys on the force. I want to ask her before someone else does." Trouble looked desperate. Foaly couldn't help but want to help him.
"Alright, what do you need?" Foaly asked, but he never found out. Just then an urgent call came over videophone.
Police Plaza, Recon Central, 5 minutes later
Captain Holly Short was one of the best officers Recon has ever seen. She held most of the records in the department, unless the Commander, Julius Root, already held them. She was also the first girl officer to be on Recon. Today like every other day she was to be found in the Commanders office being yelled at again.
"You were late, AGAIN!" shouted the Commander at the top of his voice. His usual red color was appearing on his face. He lit a Fungus cigar and stuck it in his mouth.
"Not even by a minute, Commander!" shouted Holly back. She hated how the Commander always singled her out. "Verbil and Nine haven't even checked in yet."
"Yeah. And I'll have a word with them too!"
"Come on you always say that. 'I'll have a talk with them', 'I'll give them a piece of my mind' yet I'm the one your always yelling at and threatening to put on traffic!"
"Captain Short, are you calling me a liar?"
"Yes, sir!" said Holly. She knew she had gone too far there. Root was shaking in his seat. His anger was clearly visible.
"You...I...no..." Root was so angry he couldn't even form sentences. Holly was preparing herself for the worst, but she was spared a full telling off by the ring of a videophone on Roots desk. Root gave Holly a dark look and answered it. "Yes, what have we got?"
"A class four shuttle high jacking." Said the caller. A second videophone came up.
"Anything on the perps.?" asked Root.
"Yes," said the second caller. "Five goblins. Part of the B'wa Kell that's still around."
"Location?" said Root.
"E 25. Chute to Northern Switzerland." It was Foaly he appeared on a third screen. "Shuttles dock and won't take off."
"Any demands?" asked Root.
"Yes. They want all the all the goblins in howlers peak released within two hours other wise they will start killing civilians." Said the first caller.
"Sir?" Said Foaly "There's a worse part."
"You better be being melodramatic horse!" said Root dryly.
"Afraid not, sir. There was an LEP officer on board. One Private Pronghorn, sir. The goblins found out and shot him, sir. Report is he's dead."
Holly gasped.
"D'avrit!" swore Root pounding his fist on the desk. "What the hell were they thinking? This needs fast action. Foaly, tap into the shuttles surveillance, I want to see everything that goes on in there."
"Ye, sir" said Foaly disconnecting.
"You, send me Captain and Corporal Kelp." Root told the second caller.
"Yes, sir, Right away!" he said and he disconnected, too.
"And you," he said to the first caller, "get me the list of fairies on the shuttle. I want to know exactly who is on it."
"Yes, sir." And he sign off.
Just then Trouble Kelp came bursting through Root's office door.
"I was in Oops. When the call came through." He explained. His eyes lingered on Holly then he flicked then back to Root.
"Good." Said Root, "Get Retrieval 1 ready, Captain. And get on site, I –"
His sentence was cut off by Grub Kelps entrance.
"You wanted to she me, Commander?" said Grub.
"Yes. Just a second, Corporal." Root turned back to Trouble. "I want a your team there in 10 minutes, no less. I want a team of techies, too. Make sure Foaly is on site. I'll be down there in a minute. Move out."
"Got it, sir." Said Trouble and he left the office.
The Commander waited till he was gone and turned to Grub."
"Corporal, I want the entire terminal evacuated. Not a single civilian in site. Got it."
"Yes sir" and he left, too.
"Commander, I..." Holly began.
"Save it, Short" said the Commander, "You were right." Holly had to make a mental note. The Commander said she was right. "But now is not the time. Get down there. You're my best officer and I need someone to get in the shuttle before those pea brains start killing any more fairies. Understood?"
"Yes sir" Holly turned to leave, but Root called her back.
"You mess this up and it's your badge, Short." So much for being nice.
"Understood, Commander." And Holly left the office.
"Let me in, Foaly." He said to the box.
"Are you armed?" came the centaur's voice.
"Come on, Foaly!"
"Protocol, raise your arms. Drop your pants and –"
"FOALY! Buzz me through!"
A buzz came and the door slid open. Foaly was laughing in his swivel chair.
"Ha ha. Very funny." Said Trouble, though he was smiling.
"I thought it was." Said Foaly, wiping tears of laughter from his face. "So you got the file for me?"
"Yeah. Right here." Trouble handed over the signed file. "Listen, Foaly, can I talk to you man to man?"
"Um...no." said Foaly quite convincingly. Then, he gave Trouble a disbelieving look. "How long have I known you? And you don't think you can talk to me!"
Another bit of history. Trouble and Foaly have known each other since their high school days, every since Trouble and his family moved to Haven. Trouble had been failing mathematics. His teacher said he needed to pass or he would have to repeat the year. Foaly who was in his class, offered to help and they had been best friends ever since.
Foaly close the booth's door.
"So, what is it?"
Trouble explained all about his love for Holly. He told Foaly about how he's loved her from the first day they met, he told him about how pretty and smart he thought she was, and he told him about his repetitive dreams. Surprisingly the centaur stayed quite through out the whole explanation. But when it was over, he couldn't resist taking a crack at his best friend.
"Has tough Trouble wouble gone all softie on me?" said Foaly in a mock baby voice. He laughed heartily at his own joke. Trouble did not look as happy. Foaly stopped laughing immediately at the look on Trouble's face. "I guess not." he mumbled.
"Foaly, I told you because I have to ask her out today. If I don't do it soon, she'll eventually find someone else. Verbil keeps going at her. So do half the other guys on the force. I want to ask her before someone else does." Trouble looked desperate. Foaly couldn't help but want to help him.
"Alright, what do you need?" Foaly asked, but he never found out. Just then an urgent call came over videophone.
Police Plaza, Recon Central, 5 minutes later
Captain Holly Short was one of the best officers Recon has ever seen. She held most of the records in the department, unless the Commander, Julius Root, already held them. She was also the first girl officer to be on Recon. Today like every other day she was to be found in the Commanders office being yelled at again.
"You were late, AGAIN!" shouted the Commander at the top of his voice. His usual red color was appearing on his face. He lit a Fungus cigar and stuck it in his mouth.
"Not even by a minute, Commander!" shouted Holly back. She hated how the Commander always singled her out. "Verbil and Nine haven't even checked in yet."
"Yeah. And I'll have a word with them too!"
"Come on you always say that. 'I'll have a talk with them', 'I'll give them a piece of my mind' yet I'm the one your always yelling at and threatening to put on traffic!"
"Captain Short, are you calling me a liar?"
"Yes, sir!" said Holly. She knew she had gone too far there. Root was shaking in his seat. His anger was clearly visible.
"You...I...no..." Root was so angry he couldn't even form sentences. Holly was preparing herself for the worst, but she was spared a full telling off by the ring of a videophone on Roots desk. Root gave Holly a dark look and answered it. "Yes, what have we got?"
"A class four shuttle high jacking." Said the caller. A second videophone came up.
"Anything on the perps.?" asked Root.
"Yes," said the second caller. "Five goblins. Part of the B'wa Kell that's still around."
"Location?" said Root.
"E 25. Chute to Northern Switzerland." It was Foaly he appeared on a third screen. "Shuttles dock and won't take off."
"Any demands?" asked Root.
"Yes. They want all the all the goblins in howlers peak released within two hours other wise they will start killing civilians." Said the first caller.
"Sir?" Said Foaly "There's a worse part."
"You better be being melodramatic horse!" said Root dryly.
"Afraid not, sir. There was an LEP officer on board. One Private Pronghorn, sir. The goblins found out and shot him, sir. Report is he's dead."
Holly gasped.
"D'avrit!" swore Root pounding his fist on the desk. "What the hell were they thinking? This needs fast action. Foaly, tap into the shuttles surveillance, I want to see everything that goes on in there."
"Ye, sir" said Foaly disconnecting.
"You, send me Captain and Corporal Kelp." Root told the second caller.
"Yes, sir, Right away!" he said and he disconnected, too.
"And you," he said to the first caller, "get me the list of fairies on the shuttle. I want to know exactly who is on it."
"Yes, sir." And he sign off.
Just then Trouble Kelp came bursting through Root's office door.
"I was in Oops. When the call came through." He explained. His eyes lingered on Holly then he flicked then back to Root.
"Good." Said Root, "Get Retrieval 1 ready, Captain. And get on site, I –"
His sentence was cut off by Grub Kelps entrance.
"You wanted to she me, Commander?" said Grub.
"Yes. Just a second, Corporal." Root turned back to Trouble. "I want a your team there in 10 minutes, no less. I want a team of techies, too. Make sure Foaly is on site. I'll be down there in a minute. Move out."
"Got it, sir." Said Trouble and he left the office.
The Commander waited till he was gone and turned to Grub."
"Corporal, I want the entire terminal evacuated. Not a single civilian in site. Got it."
"Yes sir" and he left, too.
"Commander, I..." Holly began.
"Save it, Short" said the Commander, "You were right." Holly had to make a mental note. The Commander said she was right. "But now is not the time. Get down there. You're my best officer and I need someone to get in the shuttle before those pea brains start killing any more fairies. Understood?"
"Yes sir" Holly turned to leave, but Root called her back.
"You mess this up and it's your badge, Short." So much for being nice.
"Understood, Commander." And Holly left the office.