Hello everyone! Ok, first I'd like to comment about the enormous paragraphs
I seem to do – when I type these up, I do put them in proper paragraphs,
but they seem to merge together :s oh well.
You're summary is in this paragraph points down
Identity99 – Woo my first reviewer!!! As a reward, you get a huge paragraph from me!!! Right, well, the reason why no one else had commented on my story so far is probably because I wrote and posted all three chapters in one day. Yesterday, in fact! The plot hasn't been revealed yet because I want the readers to get a basic idea of the environments the characters are in, and you get a chance to meet Ruth Valie before you're launched into the plot. In this chapter, exciting stuff is going to happen to Holly, maybe beginning the actual story line, I'm not quite sure yet, but it is a big thing and very important for our first female officer! I'm going to start having the fairies and mud people in the same chapters soon too! Lucky you... now, I see what you mean when you say how Artemis is a male Mary-Sue, but to be honest, Ruth was supposed to be the Mary-Sue! That's why she won in fencing. I know he might seem a bit perfect at the moment, but that's me trying to get across that Arty is older now, and acts more his age by making friends, doing normal teenager things, and shelving his immense knowledge sometimes so he can have a normal conversation with his friends. I also think that now Artemis is 18, he has grown into his body and can make his appearance work for him. (hehe, same goes for his room mates!) Also, Will is supposed to be completely girl-crazy, and Tom is supposed to be more placid, and not quite so driven by girls, though he does get interested in them. Maybe I should make that more clear... I'm not sure if Tom and Will will play a very big part as yet, but I promise that all three of them will show sides of themselves that aren't so perfect ( I've rambled long enough - on with the story!
Artemis Fowl, Chapter 4
Five minutes after Foaly's message, Holly appeared in the Ops Booth along with a red-faced Commander Root. Root was clearly not in the mood.
"Alright, what is it this time? This had better be good." Foaly pretended to look shocked. "Since when is it not good, Julius?" Root sighed. He gave up trying to get Foaly to call him Commander a long time ago. "Since I said so, now what is it?"
Foaly's fingers flew across the keyboard as he brought up a map onto the plasma screen. "We have a few more rogue goblins. They're in the centre of Haven City, and are causing quite a riot. They have more illegal weapons – they're a kind of neutrino, but they've adapted them to be neutrino 2001s."
Root didn't look impressed, and merely grunted something that sounded like "original" but looked taken aback when he heard Holly gasp.
Foaly sighed exasperated – obviously Root hadn't done any refresher courses since he was a Commander. He prepared to explain himself. "As you (Hopefully) know, the neutrinos work by shooting a laser beam into the opponent. Now these Neutrino 2001s still use lasers, but instead of killing the opponent immediately, the beam penetrates the body slowly knocking them out and gives them a virus that eats them from the inside out."
The Commander sat down, his face no longer red but white. "Any injuries so far?"
"Nope, but its only a matter of time. I think you should send in the LEP and try to take these goblins out. Maybe from a long distance."
"I don't think so, Foaly. We'd need a distraction, they're bound to have goblins on watch for this sort of thing. I'm not putting any of my officers at risk when they have those Neutrino 2001s."
Holly piped up after watching the screen. "Commander, it doesn't look like we have a choice. I'll be a distraction, while the other officers take out the goblins. I'm a good flyer, they wont get me, I beat your personal record remember."
Foaly interrupted Root as soon as he saw he was about to say no. "It's the only way Julius. I don't want Holly to go out there either, but you have to admit, she's amazing, I don't think anyone will be able to do it any better." When Foaly said she was amazing, he hoped they thought he meant about the flying. He did, of course, but he thought it about Holly in general too. But no one was supposed to know that.
Root appeared to be having a severe internal struggle with himself. Holly could just see the cogs inside his head turning. Finally he answered. "Alright" he snapped. "Holly, you go as a distraction. Foaly, I want you to give Holly all the gizmos you have to help her, I don't want her to have as many advantages as possible. Holly, I want you to have the best gun you can lift, fire at will with the setting on stun. All clear? Good. Holly, get yourself set up while I fetch the rest of my officers."
With that, he glared at them both for a second before turning on his heel and marching off.
Once Holly was loaded with all the gadgets that could fit on her tiny body, Foaly paused her on her way out of the door to say goodbye before she faced the most recent mission.
"Holly." He touched her arm to get her attention with a serious look on his face. "Look, I know you volunteered to do this, but promise me that if you feel you cant cope for much longer, report back immediately. Its not worth staying."
"Foaly – "Holly began.
"Promise me."
Holly gave in. "Ok, I promise. And don't look so worried I'll be fine. This is what I'm here for, remember?" She threw him a grin and went to meet Root and her fellow officers.
Just in seeing distance of the disturbance, Holly took some deep breaths and prepared herself mentally for what she was about to do. She looked around to see if everyone was ready. They were. As she looked, she saw Commander Root about to say something. Geez, she thought. The way people are talking you'd think that I wont come out alive! Giving a wave of goodbye, she threw herself off the building and flew towards the riot.
The goblins saw her immediately and began to fire. Holly kept moving and dodged between all the goblins and their shots at her. Out of the corner of her eye she saw the LEP picking the goblins off one by one. She hoped they'd hurry, she couldn't distract them for long.
Then Holly saw something that made her heart skip a beat. One of the goblins had got a hostage. The goblins licked its eyeballs and nodded at Holly, holding a gun to the bead of a small girl. She looked barely ten. Then Holly made a huge mistake. She stopped. Another goblin shot her in the chest with his neutrino 2001.
Holly's vision became blurry almost at once, but she kept sight of the girl. The goblin, thinking that Holly had been defeated dropped the girl to the ground. Holly, still fighting for consciousness dived towards the girl and managed to catch her by the collar. As she lowered the girl back to her parents, Holly saw Captain Trouble Kelp flying towards her. Her head swam a little more, then everything went black.
Holly woke to hear someone moving around in the room. Her eyes were too heavy to open, and she could feel a light throbbing in her chest. She tried to ignore the throbbing by trying to remember what happened. Ah, that was it. She was shot by the goblin while catching that girl. Never mind, she'd live. Now she tried talking.
"emlo" She heard the person in the room walk over to her, so she opened her eyes and tried to focus her vision. She was in the LEP hospital, looking up at one of the doctors. "Ah, you're awake, Miss Short. How are you feeling?" "Erm... ok ... I guess ..." "Good, good. Now, you remember what happened? Yes, good, that makes it easier for me to explain ... you remember the weapons the goblins were using?" "Neutrino 2001s" Holly grunted absentmindedly, realisation sinking in. "Oh no ... am I going to be ok? Have you found an antidote?" The doctor suddenly looked uncomfortable. "Ah, now, there we have a slight problem. We're working on it at the moment, but, erm ... you might experience some discomfort while we find it. Are there any family members or friends you could contact?" Holly shook her head numbly. She had no family left, and she doubted she had any friends prepared to come and visit her in hospital. "Very well, but I believe there are three people waiting outside to see you ... would you like them to come in?" "Sure, why not" said Holly, wondering vaguely who it could be while she sat up in her bed tenderly. Suddenly the door opened, and four hooves could be heard cantering through the ward. Foaly appeared next to her, and without hesitation threw his arms around her, holding her in a warm, strong embrace. Holly was so shocked, yet touched by Foaly's obvious concern that she hugged him back, her head nestled in his chest. They held their positions for a few minutes before they broke apart, Holly with a small smile on her face, and Foaly coughing awkwardly, going pink in the face. Then Holly looked round and saw Commander Root and Trouble Kelp looking at her, also concerned. That's funny, she thought, I could expect trouble to be like that, but that doesn't seem like the commander at all! Does this mean that he actually cares? Then she spoke. "Hey, Commander. You ok? I mean, you haven't shouted at anyone for at least five minutes now, you might get withdrawal symptoms!" Trouble smiled weakly, but Foaly took her hand looking anxiously at the Commander, who sat down on her bed and looked worriedly at her. "I see what you're doing, Holly, but now isn't the time for jokes. I don't want to have to break this to you, but things are very serious for you. We ... "Root hesitated. Obviously he had to tell her something she might not want to know. "We've had five cases of this weapon. Three patients have died, and the other two are still ill from it. A cure has to be found soon or..." His voice broke and he looked away. Holly stared at him in disbelief. She felt Foaly tighten his grip on her hand, and she held it close to her cuddling his arm as if it was a stuffed bear. "Holly?" Foaly seemed to be getting more worried by the minute. She looked up at the three of them, holding Foaly's arm even closer to her and spoke again. "What are the symptoms, and how long have I got?" Holly could feel tears pressing go escape her eyes, but she wouldn't let them. There was a strong possibility she would die soon and she was scared. But she wouldn't show it. This was what her job was all about. She could die any day in this line of work, and she came to terms with that a long time ago. Everyone was going to die sometime, anyway. Trouble and Root looked at Foaly, inviting him to tell her. As much as Foaly loved explaining things, this was one of the few times when he wished he didn't have to. He took a deep breath. "You have only been out for about ten minutes. All that's going to happen is that you are going to pass out more, and for longer. The throbbing you should be feeling in your chest will get heavier the more you pass out. After approximately a month, you'll pass out and ... erm .. you ... wont..." Foaly petered out miserably, not wanting to finish his sentence. Hearing this, Holly loosened her grip on Foaly's hand slightly and started playing with his fingers. "I wont have to stay in here for the whole month, will I? I mean, as long as I'm in someone's company, I should be able to move around, right?" Root considered it. "Where would you go Holly? We cant have you at work, we cant risk you passing out in a dangerous situation." Here Foaly cut in. "She can stay with me. You wont be moving around much, I'm afraid, but you'd have me to talk to. You might even be able to help a bit around the Booth." "That would be great ... please, Commander?" Holly said, clutching Foaly's arm close to her once more. Root looked at the way she was holding Foaly's arm to her. They were so close. It seemed only fair that Holly could be with her best friend in her last moments. The look in his eyes softened, and he relented. "Ok, but, Foaly, you must keep a constant eye on her, and call me immediately if anything at all happens. Anything." Foaly nodded. Holly smiled her thanks at the Commander. "Can I go now then?" Root glanced at the doctor, who considered it and nodded gravely. Holly swung her legs round and stood up, still holding onto Foaly. No one said anything, as the four walked down to the Ops Booth, three of them fighting back rebellious tears and Holly still clinging to Foaly's arm for support.
You're summary is in this paragraph points down
Identity99 – Woo my first reviewer!!! As a reward, you get a huge paragraph from me!!! Right, well, the reason why no one else had commented on my story so far is probably because I wrote and posted all three chapters in one day. Yesterday, in fact! The plot hasn't been revealed yet because I want the readers to get a basic idea of the environments the characters are in, and you get a chance to meet Ruth Valie before you're launched into the plot. In this chapter, exciting stuff is going to happen to Holly, maybe beginning the actual story line, I'm not quite sure yet, but it is a big thing and very important for our first female officer! I'm going to start having the fairies and mud people in the same chapters soon too! Lucky you... now, I see what you mean when you say how Artemis is a male Mary-Sue, but to be honest, Ruth was supposed to be the Mary-Sue! That's why she won in fencing. I know he might seem a bit perfect at the moment, but that's me trying to get across that Arty is older now, and acts more his age by making friends, doing normal teenager things, and shelving his immense knowledge sometimes so he can have a normal conversation with his friends. I also think that now Artemis is 18, he has grown into his body and can make his appearance work for him. (hehe, same goes for his room mates!) Also, Will is supposed to be completely girl-crazy, and Tom is supposed to be more placid, and not quite so driven by girls, though he does get interested in them. Maybe I should make that more clear... I'm not sure if Tom and Will will play a very big part as yet, but I promise that all three of them will show sides of themselves that aren't so perfect ( I've rambled long enough - on with the story!
Artemis Fowl, Chapter 4
Five minutes after Foaly's message, Holly appeared in the Ops Booth along with a red-faced Commander Root. Root was clearly not in the mood.
"Alright, what is it this time? This had better be good." Foaly pretended to look shocked. "Since when is it not good, Julius?" Root sighed. He gave up trying to get Foaly to call him Commander a long time ago. "Since I said so, now what is it?"
Foaly's fingers flew across the keyboard as he brought up a map onto the plasma screen. "We have a few more rogue goblins. They're in the centre of Haven City, and are causing quite a riot. They have more illegal weapons – they're a kind of neutrino, but they've adapted them to be neutrino 2001s."
Root didn't look impressed, and merely grunted something that sounded like "original" but looked taken aback when he heard Holly gasp.
Foaly sighed exasperated – obviously Root hadn't done any refresher courses since he was a Commander. He prepared to explain himself. "As you (Hopefully) know, the neutrinos work by shooting a laser beam into the opponent. Now these Neutrino 2001s still use lasers, but instead of killing the opponent immediately, the beam penetrates the body slowly knocking them out and gives them a virus that eats them from the inside out."
The Commander sat down, his face no longer red but white. "Any injuries so far?"
"Nope, but its only a matter of time. I think you should send in the LEP and try to take these goblins out. Maybe from a long distance."
"I don't think so, Foaly. We'd need a distraction, they're bound to have goblins on watch for this sort of thing. I'm not putting any of my officers at risk when they have those Neutrino 2001s."
Holly piped up after watching the screen. "Commander, it doesn't look like we have a choice. I'll be a distraction, while the other officers take out the goblins. I'm a good flyer, they wont get me, I beat your personal record remember."
Foaly interrupted Root as soon as he saw he was about to say no. "It's the only way Julius. I don't want Holly to go out there either, but you have to admit, she's amazing, I don't think anyone will be able to do it any better." When Foaly said she was amazing, he hoped they thought he meant about the flying. He did, of course, but he thought it about Holly in general too. But no one was supposed to know that.
Root appeared to be having a severe internal struggle with himself. Holly could just see the cogs inside his head turning. Finally he answered. "Alright" he snapped. "Holly, you go as a distraction. Foaly, I want you to give Holly all the gizmos you have to help her, I don't want her to have as many advantages as possible. Holly, I want you to have the best gun you can lift, fire at will with the setting on stun. All clear? Good. Holly, get yourself set up while I fetch the rest of my officers."
With that, he glared at them both for a second before turning on his heel and marching off.
Once Holly was loaded with all the gadgets that could fit on her tiny body, Foaly paused her on her way out of the door to say goodbye before she faced the most recent mission.
"Holly." He touched her arm to get her attention with a serious look on his face. "Look, I know you volunteered to do this, but promise me that if you feel you cant cope for much longer, report back immediately. Its not worth staying."
"Foaly – "Holly began.
"Promise me."
Holly gave in. "Ok, I promise. And don't look so worried I'll be fine. This is what I'm here for, remember?" She threw him a grin and went to meet Root and her fellow officers.
Just in seeing distance of the disturbance, Holly took some deep breaths and prepared herself mentally for what she was about to do. She looked around to see if everyone was ready. They were. As she looked, she saw Commander Root about to say something. Geez, she thought. The way people are talking you'd think that I wont come out alive! Giving a wave of goodbye, she threw herself off the building and flew towards the riot.
The goblins saw her immediately and began to fire. Holly kept moving and dodged between all the goblins and their shots at her. Out of the corner of her eye she saw the LEP picking the goblins off one by one. She hoped they'd hurry, she couldn't distract them for long.
Then Holly saw something that made her heart skip a beat. One of the goblins had got a hostage. The goblins licked its eyeballs and nodded at Holly, holding a gun to the bead of a small girl. She looked barely ten. Then Holly made a huge mistake. She stopped. Another goblin shot her in the chest with his neutrino 2001.
Holly's vision became blurry almost at once, but she kept sight of the girl. The goblin, thinking that Holly had been defeated dropped the girl to the ground. Holly, still fighting for consciousness dived towards the girl and managed to catch her by the collar. As she lowered the girl back to her parents, Holly saw Captain Trouble Kelp flying towards her. Her head swam a little more, then everything went black.
Holly woke to hear someone moving around in the room. Her eyes were too heavy to open, and she could feel a light throbbing in her chest. She tried to ignore the throbbing by trying to remember what happened. Ah, that was it. She was shot by the goblin while catching that girl. Never mind, she'd live. Now she tried talking.
"emlo" She heard the person in the room walk over to her, so she opened her eyes and tried to focus her vision. She was in the LEP hospital, looking up at one of the doctors. "Ah, you're awake, Miss Short. How are you feeling?" "Erm... ok ... I guess ..." "Good, good. Now, you remember what happened? Yes, good, that makes it easier for me to explain ... you remember the weapons the goblins were using?" "Neutrino 2001s" Holly grunted absentmindedly, realisation sinking in. "Oh no ... am I going to be ok? Have you found an antidote?" The doctor suddenly looked uncomfortable. "Ah, now, there we have a slight problem. We're working on it at the moment, but, erm ... you might experience some discomfort while we find it. Are there any family members or friends you could contact?" Holly shook her head numbly. She had no family left, and she doubted she had any friends prepared to come and visit her in hospital. "Very well, but I believe there are three people waiting outside to see you ... would you like them to come in?" "Sure, why not" said Holly, wondering vaguely who it could be while she sat up in her bed tenderly. Suddenly the door opened, and four hooves could be heard cantering through the ward. Foaly appeared next to her, and without hesitation threw his arms around her, holding her in a warm, strong embrace. Holly was so shocked, yet touched by Foaly's obvious concern that she hugged him back, her head nestled in his chest. They held their positions for a few minutes before they broke apart, Holly with a small smile on her face, and Foaly coughing awkwardly, going pink in the face. Then Holly looked round and saw Commander Root and Trouble Kelp looking at her, also concerned. That's funny, she thought, I could expect trouble to be like that, but that doesn't seem like the commander at all! Does this mean that he actually cares? Then she spoke. "Hey, Commander. You ok? I mean, you haven't shouted at anyone for at least five minutes now, you might get withdrawal symptoms!" Trouble smiled weakly, but Foaly took her hand looking anxiously at the Commander, who sat down on her bed and looked worriedly at her. "I see what you're doing, Holly, but now isn't the time for jokes. I don't want to have to break this to you, but things are very serious for you. We ... "Root hesitated. Obviously he had to tell her something she might not want to know. "We've had five cases of this weapon. Three patients have died, and the other two are still ill from it. A cure has to be found soon or..." His voice broke and he looked away. Holly stared at him in disbelief. She felt Foaly tighten his grip on her hand, and she held it close to her cuddling his arm as if it was a stuffed bear. "Holly?" Foaly seemed to be getting more worried by the minute. She looked up at the three of them, holding Foaly's arm even closer to her and spoke again. "What are the symptoms, and how long have I got?" Holly could feel tears pressing go escape her eyes, but she wouldn't let them. There was a strong possibility she would die soon and she was scared. But she wouldn't show it. This was what her job was all about. She could die any day in this line of work, and she came to terms with that a long time ago. Everyone was going to die sometime, anyway. Trouble and Root looked at Foaly, inviting him to tell her. As much as Foaly loved explaining things, this was one of the few times when he wished he didn't have to. He took a deep breath. "You have only been out for about ten minutes. All that's going to happen is that you are going to pass out more, and for longer. The throbbing you should be feeling in your chest will get heavier the more you pass out. After approximately a month, you'll pass out and ... erm .. you ... wont..." Foaly petered out miserably, not wanting to finish his sentence. Hearing this, Holly loosened her grip on Foaly's hand slightly and started playing with his fingers. "I wont have to stay in here for the whole month, will I? I mean, as long as I'm in someone's company, I should be able to move around, right?" Root considered it. "Where would you go Holly? We cant have you at work, we cant risk you passing out in a dangerous situation." Here Foaly cut in. "She can stay with me. You wont be moving around much, I'm afraid, but you'd have me to talk to. You might even be able to help a bit around the Booth." "That would be great ... please, Commander?" Holly said, clutching Foaly's arm close to her once more. Root looked at the way she was holding Foaly's arm to her. They were so close. It seemed only fair that Holly could be with her best friend in her last moments. The look in his eyes softened, and he relented. "Ok, but, Foaly, you must keep a constant eye on her, and call me immediately if anything at all happens. Anything." Foaly nodded. Holly smiled her thanks at the Commander. "Can I go now then?" Root glanced at the doctor, who considered it and nodded gravely. Holly swung her legs round and stood up, still holding onto Foaly. No one said anything, as the four walked down to the Ops Booth, three of them fighting back rebellious tears and Holly still clinging to Foaly's arm for support.