Chapter Four
Disclaimer: Unfortunately for me (and my bank account!) I do not own Artemis Fowl, or any other characters, names etc. used in the book. Think twice before you sue me.
A/N: This chapter has taken me sooooooooo long to write! I kept rewriting it to make it better!
I met Eoin Colfer himself today, he was so cool! I got all my books signed and am in a very good mood!
Secret Above Ground Location, Endurance complex, Apartment Four
Holly was awoken by a gentle shake.
"Holly, get up!" Trouble stood over her.
Holly opened one eye and almost shut it again when she saw Trouble. How the hell could he look so composed so early in the morning?
"Short!" He took hold of her shoulders, "Get up!"
Holly opened her other eye and yawned. "Ok, Ok, I'm getting up. Keep your ears on." She sat up, blinking. "What time is it anyway?" She asked, as Trouble headed for the door.
"Time you got up. Get a move on, or you'll be late." He walked into the kitchen to fix something to eat, leaving Holly to make a face at the closed door.
Who does he think he is? She asked herself. Ordering me around like that, he's not even my superior. She hauled herself out of bed, stretching.
Trouble was slicing fruit in the kitchen. He checked his moonometer, "Short, are you up yet?" He called out, it would be just like her to go back to sleep.
"Uh huh." Was the typical unenthusiastic reply.
A minute later, the bedroom door was pulled open, and Holly walked out, fully dressed. "Where are the others?" She asked, flopping into a chair, as if the exhaustion from walking from her bedroom to the chair was just too much to cope with.
Trouble didn't look up from the chopping board, "Robert's in his room, Sapphire's in the shower. Now if you haven't got anything better to do, come and help me with the breakfast, instead of lounging around uselessly."
Holly rolled her eyes, giving him a mock salute. "Yessir."
The four of them sat around the dining table, eating fruit salad. Trouble put down his spoon. "Right, today the real training starts..."
Robert, Sapphire and Holly eyed each other.
"… Each group has been given a different challenge. Ours is a four day hike over the moors. We're spending three night's camping at various points on the course and have to take everything that's thrown our way, in our stride. So, when you've finished eating, I want you each to pack a rucksack with the bare essentials only. Got that?"
They got it.
They went to their rooms to pack. "Hey Holly, what sort of things do you think Trouble meant when he said we'd have to take them in our stride?" Sapphire asked, bending over her rucksack.
Holly shrugged; she too was bent over her bag, packing a range of clothing including a jacket for cold weather, a sweater, three T-shirts and two pairs of trousers. "I have no idea. Wrestling mountain lions maybe!" She grinned at Sapphire to let her know she was joking. "But you can bet your life it won't be easy." She couldn't have been more right.
Trouble was distributing various objects to the group.
"We have three tents," he looked at Holly and Sapphire, "I'm afraid you two will have to share, we don't want to have to carry any unnecessary items." They nodded, not really minding whether they shared or not.
"Several tin cooking pans," Trouble continued, "Enough food for four days, and a sleeping bag each."
They all had to carry their own sleeping bags in their bags, Sapphire, Robert and Holly took a tent each and food and water, while Trouble took the pans.
"Right, have we got everything?" Trouble double checked, as they stood outside the apartment. They nodded.
"Good, now let's get going. Robert, are you ok to navigate?" Navigation wasn't really needed in the LEP anymore, not since the stand issue helmets did everything for them, but it was still a pretty useful skill to know.
Robert nodded, taking the map and compass Trouble held out to him.
They heaved their bags onto their backs, and set off. Trouble and Robert striding ahead, Holly and Sapphire following behind.
"When we start moving again, Holly you can take a turn at navigating, just don't get us lost." Trouble passed the map and compass to the Captain.
Group four had stopped for lunch. It was a well-earned break as they'd been walking across rough terrain non-stop for three hours.
"How long before we stop to pitch camp?" Sapphire asked Trouble, propping herself up on her elbows.
Trouble peered over Holly's shoulder, examining the map. Holly shivered; his breath was tickling her neck.
"About two hours I think, and then we need to find somewhere suitable to stop for the night."
Sapphire nodded, "Cool."
Trouble stood up, "Right let's get going. The sooner we start, the sooner we stop."
"Take the next left, then follow the footpath until we get to open country." She paused, looking back at Trouble; "There's a wood we can camp in, if that meets your standards that is!" Holly joked.
Trouble nodded, "Sounds all right to me."
Holly led the way down a deserted country lane, then down a winding public footpath.
"Are you sure this is the right way?" Robert asked, doubtfully.
Holly stopped, turning around, "Have I ever been wrong yet?" She winked and carried on going. That didn't reassure Robert in the slightest.
When they reached the open moor land Trouble called everyone to a halt. He pointed to a wood not far from where they were standing. "Right, that's where we're going to camp for the night, it'll provide shelter if the heavens decide to open." He glanced upwards at the rapidly darkening sky, "And I think they probably will, so the quicker we pitch tents the better."
Holly breathed a sigh of relief as they reached the wood, although she'd never admit it, she was relieved that they'd found such a sheltered place to spend the night, and she was pleased that she could put down her bag.
Trouble had found a nice, large clearing in which to camp in. It was sheltered by the thick, overhanging canopy of the trees.
They put down the bags and unpacked the tents. Trouble set about getting them organised. "Right, organise the tents in a triangle, with all the entrances facing each other, but leave a large enough space for the fire." He pointed at Sapphire and Robert, "You two do the tents and the sleeping arrangements. Sapphire, you and Holly have the largest tent as you're sharing." He turned to Holly, "Short, you go and collect firewood, but don't be too long, ok?"
Holly nodded, "Uh huh."
"I'm going to start on making something to eat." Trouble finished.
The four of them got down to their jobs. Holly trudged out of the camp and through the trees. She could hear the rain starting to fall on the tree tops way above her. Trouble had been right, as usual.
She started gathering logs, weaving her way in and out of the trees, stepping over large tree roots, getting further and further away from base camp…
Sapphire flopped onto her sleeping bag. It'd taken longer than she'd thought putting up the tents. She was glad they'd finished so she could have a rest. It had started to rain, and although only a few droplets seeped through the tree top canopy, Sapphire imagined the downpour was pretty heavy, as it'd got dark all of a sudden.
Drops of rain splashed onto Holly, she groaned, it looked like she was going to get absolutely soaked. "D'Arvit!" She cursed under her breath, deciding she'd better turn back while it was still light.
After ten minutes of walking Holly stopped. She was convinced that she recognised a particular tree. Then it hit her; she'd been walking in circles for the last five minutes. What an idiot! She told herself. No wonder she'd been sent to redo her training. She walked on, this time taking a left instead of a right. It gradually got harder and harder to see as the rain got heavier, the evening got later and the sky grew darker. It was getting pretty hard to see where to go.
Trouble paused from his preparations. He checked his moonometer, Holly had been gone an hour. That was a pretty long time for someone who'd set out to collect firewood. "Have either of you two seen Holly?" He asked Robert and Sapphire, who'd come out of the tents to help Trouble.
They shook their heads, "Nope."
"Where the hell is she?" He asked. It wasn't like Holly to go wandering of by herself without telling anyone where she was going…
Holly was straining to see now; she kept stumbling over large tree roots. She pressed on, her determined nature getting the better of her. She would've kept going, but she tripped over a particularly large root, and sprawled headlong. She rolled down a small slope, grazing her arms on shards of rock, and then her head connected with a rock, causing immense pain and instant unconsciousness. So there she lay, completely alone in the middle of a rainstorm.
A/N: Ok Ok, bad end for the chapter I know. Please Please review!