Sorry for the long wait guys. This is a relatively short chapter just because I've been pretty busy and I honestly didn't know what I wanted to do with this chapter. But here it is in all its pint sized glory.

Cricket0206-Thank you, I'll try to update a little faster from now on

sexxicosmologist- Thanks for sticking with the story, I missed the mark on the whole "next friday" thing

due to a lack of reviews but now I can start all over again! yay XD

Thank you to everyone who reviewed and favorited/followed the story thus far.

So guys, chapter 4 will be posted in TWO days if you give me at least 5 reviews. Sound reasonable?

I have the feeling I'm jinxing myself here.

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Artemis' world was reeling. He had never been in a situation where every possible variable was out of his control. The only solid concept he could hold onto was the controls in his trembling hands. And indeed, he held on, attempting to keep the bracing winds from wrestling them right out of his grip. The hull convulsed violently and Artemis watched as two outer panels ripped from the nose of the Cessna, spinning off into the dense growth of forest below. The ground rushed up at him as he fought to keep the nose level, the wings as close to steady as he could muster. It was only by the grace of God that he had found a clearing, albeit a small one, with a little under two minutes to spare. He circled around, calculating the best trajectory that would cause the least damage to the plane and ultimately to himself. Just as he began to descend the engines seized, sputtering just once and then gave way to a free fall that rendered anything that wasn't nailed down a potential weapon as objects clattered about with deadly speed. It took him only seconds to level out the air craft enough for it to descend at the correct angle, this was however, enough time for a pair of vintage aviator goggles that his father kept in the hull for good luck, to smack him rather dramatically across the face. It had looked as if someone had thrown them at him in the heat of an argument. He figured that too, was the grace of God.

He was convinced the Cessna was no longer a solid object, it seemed to be vibrating so rapidly that it he figured it must be out of the visible spectrum. The turbulence rattled Artemis' bones while the G-force pinned his small body back against the seat. His insides were climbing up his throat, the feeling of his organs lifting in free fall sent spirals of panic clawing at his chest. He had a seven second window to steer himself in to the clearing, which was roughly a quarter of a mile wide, if he miscalculated he'd wind up either impaled or smashed to pieces. Slowly he angled the nose of the Cessna, using every bit of strength to move the controls, his vision next to useless as the jolting continued. He counted aloud, five moments to impact.

"One." Artemis held the controls in place.

"Two." Steadying the craft as much as the jolting would allow, he narrowly avoided the plane irreversibly twisting sideways.

"Three." Artemis deepened the rate of descent fractionally.

"Four." As the plane drew nearer to the canopy before the clearing he pulled back violently, dropping the plane over the dense crop of trees, exactly parallel to the ground.

"Five." Artemis forced his eyes to remain open, braced himself, and prayed.

The world was a mass of colorful streaks, Artemis' started cry as he made contact with the ground was ripped away from his mouth before he could hear even hear it. The landing flung him about viciously but he never let go of the controls, despite their uselessness. He was thrown back harshly and he felt something pop, pain shot up his shoulder as he was rocketed forward. His head careened sideways, smashing into the metal wall causing an explosion of color in his left eye. The ground beneath him gave way to the weight of the plane. Something metal clipped Artemis' cheek, slicing the flesh open. The craft's landing gear lasted a good three seconds before twisting off in the disturbed earth, causing the Cessna to fish tail widely before finally grinding to a halt two yards short of a mighty oak.

When the world stopped moving Artemis let his hands drop to his sides, his muscles ached where he had held the controls. It was disturbingly peaceful, what with the birdsong echoing high in the canopy and the sun's rays filtering through the foliage. The Cessna seemed to be mostly intact, much to Artemis' surprise. A few new panels were needed and the entirety of the landing gear would need to be replaced but it could have been worse, much worse.

Artemis slapped clumsily at the safety belt, releasing himself from the pilot's seat. His vision spiraled as he made his way out of the craft, landing on his hands and knees in the soft, previously untouched grass. His right arm didn't seem to want to support his weight, the pain emanating from his shoulder told him that he'd nearly pulled it out of it's socket. It wasn't fully dislocated but the injury was enough to render the limb relatively useless. He felt his left temple, a knot was forming under the skin.

Concussion, I am about to lose consciousness.

In an effort not to pass out on the ground he crawled back into the Cessna, losing his balance several times as he tried to stand up straight. Finally, he was forced to keep his center of gravity low and simply pull himself over the edge until at least his upper body was comfortably inside the craft. He flipped himself over onto his back, feeling a trickle of blood seep from the wound on his cheek and travel into his ear. Darkness ate away at the edges of his vision like tiny ants, undulating and inducing a wave of nausea. There was a strange sound, like the sigh of the ocean. He shook his head, trying to clear the blackness that was beginning to cling like smoke. A voice filtered through the rough sound of waves breaking over shore. The voice was...familiar. Artemis twisted his head to the side, looking for the source of the noise.

The radio. It's the radio. The left side of his brain was screaming at him to reach for it, to answer the voice. But it was so easy just to lay there, no bill collectors were slamming down his door, no mother screaming obscenities at him, telling him to get out of his own house. His eyes lost their focus, the static filled his mind, a low thrum of emptiness so deliciously devoid of thought. His brain, normally running a thousand miles an hour, seemed to be processing at a crawl. He'd never felt so...free. As the static continued he felt his mind slipping into the electric pulse, drowning in its nothingness.

In the moments before he surrendered to the seductive unconsciousness that accompanied a traumatic head injury, he heard the voice of his bodyguard, frantic through the surrounding speakers of the plane.

Artemis. He said. Answer me.

The boy, upon recognizing the source of the plea, gave one final attempt at righting himself and then fell back once again and slipped into the comforting darkness.

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It's so simple.

5 reviews=chapter 4 by Saturday. That's two days people.

It's that little box under my story.

It's right there.

All you do is type nice things in it and it makes me happy.

Use the box, you know you want to.

DO NOT DENY THE BOX!

FEEEEEED ITTTTT!