Alternate ending to Artemis Fowl- chapter 3: The surface

Disclaimer: I don't own the Artemis Fowl series.

The air was filled with smoke, breathing became harder with every second that passed. If Artemis had to guess, Haven had been deserted for three months, maybe four. The shuttle port, that was once filled with life and elves screaming the moment they saw a human, most likely Butler or Artemis himself, had become an abandoned place. Artemis nearly missed that one particular elf, that always annoyed Holly and drove her up the wall, but the chair behind the counter was empty.

He had become aware of the piled up bodies, that lay on the sidewalk hours ago. Not only fairies, but also humans, most of them had been shot, but some had been killed differently. He had no doubt, that there had been a war between the fairy folk and humans. Artemis coughed. He had to get out of here before he lost consciousness. The carbon-monoxide in the air was getting dangerously high, so Artemis searched through the shuttle port for a way up.

He looked through the damaged shuttles and sorted the ones out, that he maybe could fix. At the end he choose one that didn't look as bad as the others did. He made his way to the staff room and found tools he could use. Also he found Neutrinos, all not loaded. They must have been here far too long and lost the energy, but he took them anyway. Artemis carried one thing at a time, still too weak to carry more, what cost him precious time.

He put the weapons in a carton he found in the staff room and placed them in there before he shoved the carton with great ease up the loading ramp into the back of the shuttle, afterwards he began working on the vehicle. At the end of it Artemis had to hold a cloth to his mouth and nose so that he could breathe a little. He sat in the cockpit and looked at the instruments. If Holly can do it, so can I. I've watched long enough. Artemis chuckled and fastened the straps.

He turned the switch and the engine roared to life. The display read, that the next lava flare was going to come up in 5 minutes. So Artemis waited, getting more nervous, and then he heard it, boiling and with a jolt the shuttle was shot forward. At the end of the ranching pad Artemis' heart leapt into his throat. And then he was falling, relatively fast he tugged the handle upwards and the shuttle went up and got to the exit. How Holly could hold on for so long was a mystery to him.

He approached the last obstacle: Putting on the brakes. He had assumed, that they would be where they were in a car, but there was no pedal. Artemis looked around and remembered what Holly had done and pressed some buttons on the dashboard. The shuttle slowed down and came to a halt, making Artemis exhale loudly. He stumbled out of the shuttle and sat down for a moment, trying to catch his breath, not believing that he had actually just done that and came out alive.

While he sat he examined his surroundings. Just like in Haven the shuttle port in Tara was only a better dump anymore, as quiet as Artemis had never seen before. He stood up after awhile, wondering again what had happened in the time he was gone. He walked over to the shuttle to carry the things, he had taken with him out off the shuttle. The tools, the carton with the weapons and some sketches and a laptop from Foaly's lab.

After that Artemis wondered what to do next and came to the conclusion that he should go to Fowl manor and see what had happened to the world outside. Artemis fumed about the fact that he still wore that patient gown you get in a hospital, but it had to do for now. While holding his breath he stepped out into the glowing sun. It looked normal and Artemis once again exhaled loudly. He looked around and when he saw nobody, he made his way through the fields in the direction of Fowl manor.

Artemis Fowl senior, Mexico city:

If someone had told him five months ago, that fairies existed and his son, Artemis Fowl the second, had encountered them in order to get gold for a expedition to save him, he would have sent that person right to a mental institution, but now. Artemis Fowl senior had had no clue, that his son was a hero and had been the whole time. He regretted, never having had the chance to say that he was proud of his son.

Two months after Artemis' death, things seemed to brighten up, but then the situation got even worse. Butler had left days ago, which left only Juliet to protect them and Artemis Fowl senior had thought that his own wife had gone crazy after she had tried to tell him about fairies. When humans invaded the house the boys screamed and Angeline was dragged out by the collar, Artemis Fowl was held back by some others he didn't recognize.

Enemies? Good? Bad? Who were they? Juliet led the boys up the stairs and they ran as fast as their little legs could carry them. When Juliet had tried to help him she was knocked down. The last thing he saw, before he blacked out, were the twins being hauled down, screaming and begging for help.

The next memory he had was him waking up in Mexico, without his wife, without the twins, without a Butler at his side. Alone, completely alone. Just like in Russia. After some time someone had visited. She had claimed to be someone, Angeline had talked about, before he had stopped listening out of fear that his wife had gone nuts. That someone, Opal he believed was her name, had told him about his son's adventures in a rather nasty way. He didn't know her, but despised her the moment he saw her, knowing after their first encounter that he faced the person, that was responsible of his son's death.

Fowl manor:

By the time Artemis came to a halt, the sun had set and he was surrounded by darkness. What he saw when he reached Fowl manor made him cry out. His home, that was once so magnificent, had been , just like Haven, burnt down. Only ruins left. Artemis climbed through the remaining hall of Fowl manor, where the fight had been between Butler and the troll.

He looked at the charred furniture and stepped over it, when suddenly he was pushed down. Hitting the ground the air left his lungs and Artemis coughed. "Who are you and what do you want?" A voice said. Artemis was certain that he had heard the voice before. "I can't breathe.", he choked. Even if Artemis laid on his back instead of his front, he was sure that the thing pressing against his neck, was the barrel of a gun.

Stay calm, Artemis. He chided himself. "Stand up. Slowly. If you try anything, I will shoot and believe me I will not hesitate." Artemis pushed himself off the ground, doing as the voice said. "Okay, what now?", he asked. "Hands behind your head and turn around." He put his hands behind his head and turned around. For a second the flashlight blinded him, but when his vision cleared, he couldn't believe his eyes.

So, another chapter done. R&R please. I will try to update faster, but school is stressing me out.