Artemis Fowl, Book 6 The Time Paradox

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ESPRESSO A11D TREACLE

C H A P T E R I:

ARTEmIS

sat on an o x - b l o o d leather

armchair, facing B e c k e t t and M y l e s .

v

His

l surfaces. It darted w i t h o u t a wobble along a m e t a l railing,

system. His only consolation was that he had loaded small

leaping t h r e e m e t r e s to the l o w e r branches of a p o t t e d palm

dosage darts as soon as he had secured the night watchman.

a n d from there j u m p i n g t o the c o m p o u n d wall.

She shouldn't be out t o o long. A few minutes tops.

' S h o o t ! ' hissed A r t e m i s .

T h e l e m u r was spooked now. Tiny hands tickling the

It o c c u r r e d to B u t l e r briefly that he did n o t care for

space before him. T h e sap cocktail was tempting, but there

A rtemis's expression — almost c r u e l , his b r o w creased w h e r e

was danger h e r e of the w o r s t kind and the urge to live was

a ten-year-old's b r o w should n o t have creases — but he would

overriding the desire for a tasty treat.

worry about that later; for n o w he had an animal to sedate.

' N o , ' said A r t e m i s , seeing fear cloud the creature's eyes. 'It's n o t real. T h e r e is no danger.'

B u t l e r was quick but the silky sifaka was quicker. In a Hash of fur it scaled the wall and dropped outside into the

T h e little simian was n o t convinced, as if it could read the boy's intention in the sharp angles of his face.

night, leaving a blurred white j e t stream in its wake. 'Wow,' said Butler, almost in admiration. ' T h a t was fast.'

T h e silky sifaka squeaked o n c e , as though pin-pricked,

A r t e m i s was n o t impressed by his bodyguard's c h o i c e

then scampered along A r t e m i s ' s a r m , over his shoulder and

of words. 'Wow? I think this m e r i t s m o r e than a wow. O u r

out through the cage door.

quarry has escaped and with it the funds for my A r c t i c

B u t l e r lunged for the tail, but missed by a hair. He closed his fingers into a fist.

expedition.' At this point B u t l e r was fast losing interest in the lemur.

'Perhaps it's t i m e to admit defeat on this o n e . We are

T h e r e w e r e o t h e r less ignoble ways to raise funds. B u t l e r

dangerously unprepared and our adversaries have . . . abil-

shuddered to think of the ribbing he would have to endure

ities we k n o w nothing about.'

if an a c c o u n t of this night s o m e h o w m a d e it to F a r m e r ' s

His charge's reply was to hurry after the lemur.

Bar in L A , which was o w n e d by o n e ex-blue-diamond body-

' A r t e m i s , wait,' sighed Butler. ' I f we m u s t p r o c e e d , then

guard and frequented by many m o r e .

I will take the lead.'

B u t , in spite of his distaste for the mission, Butler's sense

' T h e y want the lemur,' A r t e m i s panted as he ran. 'And

of loyalty forced him to share a fact that the park d i r e c t o r

so it b e c o m e s m o r e valuable than it was. W h e n we catch

had m e n t i o n e d earlier w h e n A r t e m i s was busy studying the

the animal, then we are in a position of power.'

alarm system.

/WW

/WW

/WW

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' T h e r e is something that I know, which you may not know,' he said archly. A r t e m i s was n o t in the m o o d for games. ' O h , really. And what would that b e ? ' ' L e m u r s are tree creatures,' replied Butler. ' T h a t little guy is spooked and he's going to climb the biggest tree he can find, even if it isn't actually a tree. If you see what I mean.' A r t e m i s saw immediately, which wasn't difficult as the huge structures cast a lattice of m o o n shadows over the entire c o m p o u n d . ' O f c o u r s e , old friend,' he said, his frown crease disappearing. ' T h e pylons.'

will have a rather large scar, but then looks are n o t really important to you.' Mulch squinted at A r t e m i s through a narrowed eye. ' A r e you trying to be funny? O h , my G o d , you're n o t . T h a t was actually the nicest thing you could think of to say.' He dabbed at his bloody forehead with a finger. ' O w . That hurts.' ' O f course.' T will have to seal it. You k n o w all about this dwarf talent, I suppose.' 'Naturally,' said A r t e m i s , keeping a straight face. 'I've seen it a dozen times.' T doubt it,' g r u n t e d M u l c h , plucking a wiggling beard

Things were going disastrously wrong for Artemis the elder.

hair from his chin. ' B u t I d o n ' t have m u c h c h o i c e , n o w do

Mulch was injured, Holly was unconscious again — feet sticking

I? W i t h the L E P e l f in dreamland, I w o n ' t be getting any

out of the dwarf's hole - and he himself was fast running out

magical help from that quarter.'

of ideas. T h e deafening clamour of a hundred endangered species going berserk was n o t helping his concentration. The animals are going ape, he thought. T h e n : What a time to develop a sense of humour.

A r t e m i s heard a rustling in the undergrowth at the rear of the cage. 'You'd b e t t e r hurry it up. I think the gorilla is o v e r c o m i n g its fear of fairies.' W i n c i n g , M u l c h introduced the beard hair to his gash.

All he could do was prioritize.

It t o o k off like a tadpole, poking through the skin, stitching

/ need to get Holly out of here, he realized. That is the most

the flaps together.Though he groaned and shuddered, M u l c h

important thing. M u l c h m o a n e d , rolling on to his b a c k , and A r t e m i s saw that there was a bleeding gash on his forehead.

managed to stay conscious. W h e n the hair had finished its work, and the wound was tied up tighter than a fly in a ball of spider's web, M u l c h

He stumbled to the dwarf's side. 'I imagine you're in great

spat on his hand and rubbed the gooey mess on to the wound.

pain,' he said. 'It's to be e x p e c t e d with such a laceration.'

'All sealed,' he proclaimed, then upon seeing the glint in

Bedside m a n n e r was n o t one of Artemis's strong suits. 'You

Artemis's eye: ' D o n ' t get any ideas, Mud Boy.This only works

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on dwarfs, and, what's m o r e , my beard hair only works on

He realizes he has been tricked.

m e . You poke one of my lovelies into your skin and all you'II

I lis theorizing was cut short by M u l c h ' s appearance in

get is an infection.'

tin

T h e rustling in the u n d e r g r o w t h g r e w louder, and

zombie glow on his face.

A r t e m i s Fowl decided to forego further information, which was almost unheard of for h i m .

tunnel, the spittle bandage on his forehead casting a

(rorilla coming,' he said as he gulped down lungfuls of i n ' ( i o t t a go.'

' T i m e we w e r e off. Can you seal the tunnel behind us?'

Artemis heard t w i n thumps as the gorilla landed on

'I can bring the w h o l e l o t down easy as pie. You'd b e t t e r

the I unnel floor. T h e huge simian r o a r e d a challenge d o w n

take the lead though, there are b e t t e r ways to go than being

tin

buried alive in . . . shall we say, recyclings. N e e d I say

ii travelled.

more?'

hole and the n o i s e g r e w in f e r o c i t y w i t h every m e t r e

I lolly m o a n e d and A r t e m i s p u l l e d h a r d e r o n h e r

T h e r e was no n e e d to say another syllable. A r t e m i s

ihoulders.

j u m p e d into the h o l e , grabbed Holly's shoulders and began

Mulch sucked down air as fast as he could, bundling

dragging h e r down the tunnel, past the blobs of luminous

Artemis and Holly d e e p e r into the tunnel. Twenty m e t r e s

spittle towards the proverbial light at the end. It was like

to go. T h e y would never m a k e it. T h e gorilla was advancing,

travelling through space towards the Milky Way.

pulverizing each spittle lantern as he passed it, roaring with

T h e sounds of his own body w e r e amplified. Gulping breath, d r u m m i n g h e a r t b e a t , the b e n d and creak of muscle and sinew.

hloodlust. A r t e m i s swore he saw a flash of t e e t h . T h e tunnel s e e m e d to shudder with each blow. Large sections collapsed.

Holly rolled along easily, h e r suit hissing on the rough surface like a nest of vipers. Or maybe t h e r e w e r e snakes down h e r e , the way A r t e m i s ' s luck was going. / am trying to do something good for a change, he r e m i n d e d himself. And this is how the Fates reward me. A life of crime was infinitely easier.

M u d and r o c k c l a t t e r e d down o n

Artemis's head and shoulders. D i r t p o o l e d in Holly's eye sockets. M u l c h ' s cheeks ballooned and he o p e n e d his lips the m e r e s t fraction to speak. ' O K , ' he said in a helium voice. ' T h e tank is full.' T h e dwarf gathered A r t e m i s and Holly in his burly Popeye

Surface noise was amplified by the tunnel's acoustics.

arms and vented every bubble of air in his body. T h e resulting

T h e gorilla sounded furious now. A r t e m i s could hear the

j e t stream propelled the group down the length o f the

slap of fists on chest and an enraged huffing.

t u n n e l . T h e trip was short, j a r r i n g and confusing.The breath

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was driven f r o m A r t e m i s ' s lungs and his fingers were

thai underneath the pillar's c o r n e r s t o n e would be a secure •pot. He pulled off the remaining stones stacked on top,

stretched to cracking, but he would n o t let go of Holly.

\\ iggled his fingers under the final boulder and heaved. It

He could n o t let h e r die. T h e unfortunate gorilla was b l o w n head-over-rump by

Came away easily, revealing nothing but w o r m s and damp c ,ndi. No package from the future; for whatever reason,

the w i n d s t o r m , yanked b a c k up the tunnel as though teth e r e d to an elastic cable. It w h o o p e d as it w e n t , digging its

that particular t r i c k would only w o r k o n c e . So. No help. I must make do with what is available.

fingers into the tunnel wall. A r t e m i s , Holly and M u l c h p o p p e d from the tunnel m o u t h , bouncing and skittering along the ditch in a tangle

4

of limbs and t o r s o s . T h e stars above t h e m w e r e speedstreaked and the m o o n was a smear of yellow light. An old famine wall halted their progress, crumbling

Artemis r e t u r n e d to w h e r e Holly and M u l c h lay. B o t h were moaning. 'I think I split a gut getting rid of that wind,' said M u l c h . ' T h e r e was a bit t o o m u c h fear in the m i x . ' Artemis's nose w r i n k l e d . ' W i l l you b e O K ? ' ' G i v e me a m i n u t e and I'll be plenty strong enough to

under the i m p a c t o f t h r e e bodies. ' F o r m o r e than a hundred and fifty years this wall stood,'

earry that huge a m o u n t of gold you p r o m i s e d m e . ' Holly was groggy. H e r eyes fluttered as she tried to pull

coughed A r t e m i s . ' T h e n we c o m e along.' He lay on his b a c k feeling thoroughly defeated. His m o t h e r would die and Holly would soon hate him when

herself out of it and her arms flopped like fish out of water. Artemis did a quick pulse and temperature c h e c k . Slight fever but steady heartbeat. Holly was recovering, but it would be

she w o r k e d out the truth.

several minutes before she could control her mind or body.

All is lost. I have no idea what to do. T h e n o n e o f the n o t o r i o u s Rathdown pylons sharpened in his vision — m o r e specifically, the figures clambering

/ must do this on my own, A r t e m i s realized. No Holly, no Butler. J u s t A r t e m i s versus A r t e m i s .

along its service ladder. The lemur has escaped, thought A r t e m i s , and is climbing as

And perhaps an Omnitool, he thought, reaching into Holly's pocket.

high as it can. A reprieve. T h e r e was still a c h a n c e . What I need to save this situation is a full LEP surveillance and assault kit. Perhaps I will have Number One send one back for me. A r t e m i s disentangled himself from the others and decided

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T h e Rathdown electricity pylons had b e e n featured in Irish news headlines several times since their erection. Environmentalists protested vehemently that the appearance of the

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gigantic pylons blighted an otherwise beautiful valley, not to

Artemis r e a c h e d the pylon's base, w h i c h was secured by

mention the possible detrimental effect the uninsulated power

I cage. T h e heavy padlock submitted instantly to a quick

lines could have on the health of anyone or anything living

|ab from the O m n i t o o l , as did the steel e q u i p m e n t locker.

b e l o w their arcs. T h e national electricity board had coun

Inside

tered these arguments by pleading that the lines were t o o

Artemis tugged on the heavy overalls, wiggling his fingers

high to harm anything and that constructing smaller pylons

Into the attached gloves, tucking his long hair inside the

around the valley would blight ten times m o r e land.

hood.

w e r e various t o o l s , walkie-talkies and a Faraday suit.

T h e flame-retardant and steel-thread suit had t o

And so a half a dozen of these m e t a l giants bridged

enclose him c o m p l e t e l y to act as a protective Faraday cage.

R a t h d o w n Valley, reaching a height of o n e hundred m e t r e s

< Mherwise he could n o t venture out on the wires w i t h o u t

at t h e i r zenith. T h e pylon bases w e r e often r i n g e d by

being b u r n e d to a c r i m i n a l - m a s t e r m i n d cinder.

p r o t e s t e r s , so m u c h so that the p o w e r company had taken to servicing the lines by helicopter.

M o r e luck. An elevator platform ran up the side of the pylon. It was l o c k e d and k e y - c o d e d . B u t locks quailed w h e n

On this night, as A r t e m i s r a c e d across the m o o n l i t

laced with an O m n i t o o l , and a key c o d e was of little value

meadow, kicking up diamond dewdrops, there w e r e no

when it was a simple m a t t e r to u n s c r e w the c o n t r o l panel

p r o t e s t e r s ringing the pylons, but they had planted their

and activate the pulley manually.

signs like m o o n flags. A r t e m i s slalomed through this obstacle

A r t e m i s held tight to the safety rail as the tiny elevator

course while simultaneously craning his n e c k to t r a c k the

shuddered and whined its way into the night sky. T h e valley

figures above.

spread out b e l o w him as he rose and a westerly wind c r e p t

T h e l e m u r was on the w i r e now, silhouetted by the

over the hills, tugging a strand of hair from his h o o d .

m o o n , s c a m p e r i n g easily along the m e t a l c a b l e , while

A r t e m i s gazed n o r t h , and for a fanciful m o m e n t imagined

A r t e m i s the younger and B u t l e r w e r e stranded on the small

he could see the lights of Fowl Manor.

platform at the pylon's base, unable to venture any further. Finally, thought A r t e m i s , a stroke or two of luck. Stroke o n e was that the l e m u r was suddenly up for grabs.

Mother is there, he thought. Unwell now and unwell in the future. Perhaps I can just talk to my younger self. Explain the situation.

Stroke the s e c o n d was that while his young nemesis had

T h i s thought was even m o r e fanciful than the last.

chosen to follow the silky sifaka directly up the pylon the

A r t e m i s had no illusions about what he had b e e n like at

animal was scaling, he h i m s e l f could go up the adjacent

the age of ten. He had trusted no o n e c o m p l e t e l y but

p o l e , w h i c h j u s t happened to be the service pylon.

h i m s e l f . N o t his p a r e n t s , n o t even B u t l e r . A t the f i r s t

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m e n t i o n of t i m e travel, his younger self would have his

On the far pylon, A r t e m i s the younger scowled at the

bodyguard shoot a dart first and ask questions later. A lot

animal, while simultaneously trying to t e m p t it b a c k with

of questions and at great length. T h e r e was no t i m e for

his bag of paste.

explanations and debate. This battle would have to be won by wits and guile.

There is nothing to do but go out on the wires and bring the lemur back yourself.

T h e elevator grated into its brackets at the top of the

T h e h o t suit was equipped for moving across the wires.

pylon. A skull and crossbones sign was riveted to the tall

T h e r e was a safety c o r d wrapped round his waist and a light-

safety gate. Even if A r t e m i s had n o t b e e n a genius the sign

ning rod in a long p o c k e t on his thigh. B e l o w the platform

would have b e e n difficult to m i s i n t e r p r e t , and just in case

was a small sledge on insulated runners that the engineers

a total idiot did manage to scale the pylon there was a

used to hand-crank themselves b e t w e e n pylons.

s e c o n d sign depicting a c a r t o o n m a n being zapped by e l e c -

Brains count for little now, he realized. What I need is balance.

tricity from a c a r t o o n pylon. T h e man's skeleton was clearly

A r t e m i s groaned. Balance was n o t his f o r t e .

visible, X - r a y style.

Taking a deep breath, he c r o u c h e d low, drawing the light-

Apparently electricity is dangerous, A r t e m i s m i g h t have c o m m e n t e d had B u t l e r b e e n by his side. T h e r e was yet another l o c k on the safety gate, w h i c h delayed A r t e m i s about as long as the first t w o . Outside the safety gate was a small platform covered with w i r e m e s h , with twin p o w e r lines h u m m i n g directly beneath. There are half a million volts running through those lines, thought A r t e m i s . / do hope there are no rips in this suit. A r t e m i s squatted low, peering along the line. T h e l e m u r had paused halfway b e t w e e n the t w o pylons and was chattering to itself as if weighing up its options. Luckily for the

ning r o d from his p o c k e t . A l m o s t as soon as it cleared the material, j e t s o f w h i t e - h o t sparks j u m p e d from the p o w e r lines c o n n e c t i n g with the tip of the r o d . T h e stream buzzed and hissed like a n e o n snake. You are equalizing voltage, that's all. The electricity cannot hurt you. Perhaps n o t , but A r t e m i s could already feel the hair standing on his n e c k . Was that anxiety, or w e r e a couple of volts sneaking in s o m e w h e r e ? Don't be absurd. If there is a hole, all the volts will worm inside, not just a couple.

small creature, it was only touching o n e line, so no c u r r e n t

Artemis was vaguely familiar with the technique for wire-

flowed through its body. If it put so m u c h as a t o e on the

walking, as the national broadcasting service had done a news

second line the shock would spin it thirty m e t r e s into the

special on the high-wire daredevils w h o risked their lives to

air and it would be stone dead before it stopped revolving.

keep the lights of Dublin burning. It wasn't so m u c h wire-

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Ten metres later his a r m s ached and he was n o t i c e d by

walking as wire-crawling. T h e cables were extremely taut and the maintenance engineers clipped on their safety lines, lay on the sledge, then turned the winch until they reached the maintenance site. S i m p l e . In theory. F o r a professional on a c a l m m o r n i n g . N o t so easy for an amateur in the dead of night with only the stars and the ambient light of nearby Dublin to guide h i m . A r t e m i s sheathed his lightning rod and gingerly clipped his safety line to o n e of the cables. He held his breath, as though that could possibly make a difference, and laid his gloved hands on the m e t a l sledge. Still alive. A good start. Artemis inched forward, the metal w a r m under his clumsy

the

opposition.

A v o i c e floated across from the o t h e r pylon. 'I advise you to stay w h e r e you are, young m a n . If that suit has the tiniest rip, then o n e slip and those cables will liquefy your I in and m e l t your b o n e s / Artemis s c o w l e d . Young man? Had he really b e e n so obnoxious? So patronizing? 4

It would take less than a second for you to die,' continued

ten year-old A r t e m i s . ' B u t that's quite long enough to be in m o r t a l agony, d o n ' t you think? And all for nothing, as the l e m u r will obviously r e t u r n for this treat.' Yes, he had b e e n smug as w e l l as o b n o x i o u s and patronizing.

gloved hands, until he was lying flat on the sledge with the

A r t e m i s c h o s e n o t to reply, c o n c e n t r a t i n g his e n e r g y

double-handled winch in front of his face. It was a delicate

on staying alive and enticing the silky sifaka towards h i m .

manoeuvre and would have been impossible had the cables

F r o m his considerable r e s e r v o i r o f k n o w l e d g e o n j u s t about

n o t been tethered together at regular intervals. He began to

everything, A r t e m i s p l u c k e d the fact that smaller simians

twist and almost immediately the strain on his arms was

were c o m f o r t e d by a purring noise. Thank you, Jane

tremendous as he moved his own body weight.

Goodall.

The gym. Butler,you were right. Til do weights, anything, just get me off these cables with that lemur under my arm. A r t e m i s slid forward, feeling the r u n n e r s scrape the rough m e t a l of the cables, their intense h u m setting his t e e t h on edge and sending constant shivers coursing along his arched spine. T h e wind was l o w but still threatened to topple him from his lofty p e r c h and the ground s e e m e d like another planet. Distant and uninviting.

So he began to purr, m u c h to the a m u s e m e n t of his younger self. ' L i s t e n , Butler. T h e r e ' s a cat on the w i r e . A big torn, I would say. Perhaps you should t h r o w him a fish.' B u t the m o c k i n g t o n e was undercut with tension. Young A r t e m i s k n e w exactly what was going on. M o r e purring and it s e e m e d to be working: the ghostly sifaka t o o k a few cautious steps towards the elder A r t e m i s ,

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his beady black eyes glittering with starlight and perhaps

Jock

still,

apart from his lips, w h i c h b u r b l e d o u t a

curiosity.

r o m l o r t i n g purr.

Holly would be proud. I am talking to an animal.

That's it, little fellow. Climb on to my arm.

Even as he purred, A r t e m i s w i n c e d at h o w ludicrous the

A r t e m i s l o o k e d into the lemur's eyes and for perhaps

situation had b e c o m e . It was a typical Fowlesque m e l o -

the first t i m e realized that it had e m o t i o n s . T h e r e was fear

drama. Two parties hunting for a l e m u r on the highest

in lhose eyes, but also a mischievous confidence. I low could I have sold you to those madmen? he w o n d e r e d .

p o w e r lines in Ireland. A r t e m i s l o o k e d along the dip of the lines across to the

T h e l e m u r suddenly c o m m i t t e d itself, scampering on to

o t h e r pylon, w h e r e B u t l e r stood, j a c k e t tail flapping around

Artemis's shoulder. It s e e m e d c o n t e n t to sit there while

his thighs. T h e bodyguard leaned into the wind, and the

Artemis ferried it b a c k to the service pylon.

intensity of his stare s e e m e d to p i e r c e the darkness, honing

As A r t e m i s r e t r e a t e d , he kept his eye fixed on his younger self. He would never simply a c c e p t defeat like this. N e i t h e r

in on A r t e m i s the elder like a laser. / miss my bodyguard, thought A r t e m i s .

of t h e m would. Young A r t e m i s ' s eyes suddenly snapped open

T h e l e m u r scampered closer, encouraged by the purring

and m e t his nemesis's stare.

and perhaps fooled by the steel-grey h o t suit.

' S h o o t the animal,' he said coldly.

That's right. I am another lemur.

B u t l e r was surprised. ' S h o o t the monkey.'

Artemis's arms were shaking from the strain of turning

'It's a . . . never m i n d . J u s t shoot it. T h e m a n is p r o t e c t e d

the handles at such an awkward angle. Every muscle in his

by his suit, but the l e m u r is an easy target.'

body was stretched to its limit, including several he had never

' B u t the fall . . .'

used before. His head was dizzy from keeping his balance.

' I f it dies, it dies. I will n o t be t h w a r t e d h e r e , Butler. If I c a n n o t have that lemur, then no o n e will have it.'

All this and animal impersonations too. O n e m e t r e now. T h a t was the distance b e t w e e n A r t e m i s

B u t l e r f r o w n e d . Killing animals was n o t in his j o b

and the lemur. T h e r e w e r e no m o r e taunts from the o t h e r

description, but he k n e w from e x p e r i e n c e that there was

side. A r t e m i s glanced across and found his nemesis had his

no point in arguing with the young master. At any rate, it

eyes closed and was breathing deeply. Trying to c o m e up

was a bit late to p r o t e s t now, p e r c h e d atop a pylon. He

with a plan.

should have spoken up m o r e forcefully earlier.

The lemur jumped

o n t o the

sledge

and t o u c h e d

A r t e m i s ' s gloved hand tentatively. C o n t a c t . A r t e m i s stayed

' W h e n e v e r you're ready, Butler. T h e target is n o t getting any closer.'

154

155

O u t on the cables, A r t e m i s the elder could scarcely believe what he was hearing. B u t l e r had drawn his pistol

the (able towards Butler, nose sniffing the air, nostrils flaring 18 (hey located the sweet scent of Artemis's goodie bag.

and was climbing over the rails to get a b e t t e r shot. A r t e m i s had n o t intended to speak, as interaction with his younger self could have serious repercussions for the

In a m a t t e r of seconds it sat curled in the c r o o k of young Artemis's elbow, contentedly dipping its long fingers into the sap. T h e young boy's face glowed with victory.

future, but the words w e r e out before he could stop t h e m . 'Stay b a c k . You d o n ' t k n o w what you're dealing with.'

'Now,' he said, 'I think it b e s t that you stay exactly w h e r e you are until we leave. I think fifteen minutes should be

Oh, the irony.

line. After that, I advise you to be on your way and c o u n t

'Ah, he speaks,' called young A r t e m i s across the abyss.

yourself fortunate that I did n o t have B u t l e r sedate you.

' H o w fortunate that we can understand each other. W e l l ,

R e m e m b e r the pain that you are feeling now. T h e ache of

understand this, stranger. I will have that silky sifaka or it

utter defeat and hopelessness. And, if you ever consider

will die. M a k e no mistake.'

crossing swords with m e again, r e v i e w your m e m o r y o f

'You must n o t do this. T h e r e ' s t o o m u c h at stake.'

this pain, and perhaps you will think t w i c e . '

'I must do it. I have no c h o i c e . N o w send the animal over, or B u t l e r will shoot.'

A r t e m i s the elder was forced to w a t c h as B u t l e r stuffed the l e m u r i n t o a duffel bag, and b o y and bodyguard

T h r o u g h all of this, the l e m u r sat p e r c h e d on fourteenyear-old Artemis's head, scratching the stitching of his h o o d . So the t w o boys w h o w e r e o n e boy, l o c k e d eyes for a long tense m o m e n t .

c o m m e n c e d their c l i m b down the service ladder. Several minutes later, the Bentley's headlights scythed the darkness as the car pulled away from R a t h d o w n Park and on to the motorway. Straight to the airport, no doubt.

/ would have done it, thought A r t e m i s the elder, shocked by the c r u e l determination in his own blue eyes. And so he gingerly r e a c h e d up o n e hand and plucked the silky sifaka from his head.

A r t e m i s r e a c h e d up and gripped the w i n c h handles. He was n o t beaten yet, far from it. He intended to cross swords with his ten-year-old self again j u s t as soon as he possibly could. If anything, the boy's m o c k i n g speech had fuelled

'You have to go back,' he said softly. ' G o b a c k for the

his d e t e r m i n a t i o n .

nice treat. And, if I w e r e you, I'd stick close to the big human. T h e little one isn't very nice.'

do.

T h e l e m u r reached out and tweaked Artemis's nose, m u c h as B e c k e t t might have done, then turned and t r o t t e d along

/VSAA

Remember the pain? thought A r t e m i s . / hate myself. I really

A/VNA

157

l o m e fried c h i c k e n . W i t h b a r b e c u e sauce. And a large Pepsi. A n d maybe m o r e chicken.' l

I Iungry?'

'Always. A dwarf can only eat so m u c h dirt.' Artemis didn't k n o w w h e t h e r t o giggle o r groan. M u l c h

A B L O B OF PHLEGItl

C H A P T E R 8:

would tions,

always have trouble grasping the gravity o f situao r perhaps he liked t o give that impression.

' W h e r e ' s Holly?' M u l c h nodded towards a grave-shaped m o u n d of earth. 'I buried the captain. She was moaning quite loudly. Arty

B Y the t i m e A r t e m i s had m a d e his way down r

from the pylon, Holly had disappeared. He'd

11 i h l ice Plaza puts all of this together, we should have r e t u r n e d

the loader's w o r t h of L E P hardware they had helped t h e m -

to the future.'

selves to from the l o c k - u p , but M u l c h had had no p r o b l e m

'And we can fly without a paddle?'

taking credit for those.

Holly and M u l c h shared a guffaw and a few words in

'Hey, I ' m already public e n e m y n u m b e r one,' he had said. Tt's n o t as if I can go any higher on the list.'

C m o m m i s h that w e r e t o o fast for A r t e m i s to catch. He did think he heard the w o r d cowpog, which translated as moron. ' Y e s , M u d Boy. We can fly without a paddle, unless you're

So n o w they w e r e seated inside the tunnel scraper, w h i c h

planning to scrape s o m e residue from the tunnel walls.

was slotted into a launching b r a c k e t , drawing a few minute's

I Isually we leave that to the robots.'

charge from the coupling d o c k b e f o r e they dropped into the abyss. Holly spent the t i m e falsifying a r e p o r t for the tunnel authorities.

A r t e m i s had forgotten h o w cutting Holly could be with people she wasn't fond of. M u l c h sang a few bars of the old human song 'You've

174

Lost T h a t Lovin' F e e l i n " . He c r o o n e d at Holly, clutching an imaginary m i c r o p h o n e in his fist. Holly was n o t smiling now. ' Y o u ' r e about to lose all feeling in your legs, D i g g u m s , if you d o n ' t shut it.' M u l c h n o t i c e d Holly's expression and realized that now

A FOWL ttiOOD

C H A P T E R 10:

was n o t the b e s t t i m e to be needling her. Holly decided it was t i m e to t e r m i n a t e the conversation. She r e m o t e - o p e n e d the access hatch and w i t h d r e w the docking clamps. ' B u c k l e up, boys,' she said, and dropped the small craft into a steep dive down an e n o r m o u s h o l e , like dropping a

FEZ, HIOROCCO

peanut into the m o u t h of a hungry hippo. TEFI-year-old A r t e m i s was about as miser-

/J

able as B u t l e r could r e m e m b e r seeing him,

f

, ^ \ ii ^y\ (

;

e x c e p t for perhaps the t i m e he had lost a science prize to an Australian postgraduate.

The bodyguard glanced in the m i r r o r of the r e n t e d Land Rover, and saw that his young charge was sitting in a puddle l perspiration, his expensive suit virtually dissolving on his spare frame. A perforated b o x sat b e l t e d on the seat beside A r t e m i s . Three black fingers poked from one of the holes as the captured l e m u r e x p l o r e d his prison. Artemis has barely looked at the creature. He is trying to objec-

tify

it. It is no small thing to cause the extinction of a species,

even to save one's father. A r t e m i s , meanwhile, was cataloguing the causes of his misery. A missing father and a m o t h e r teetering on the brink

176

177

of nervous collapse w e r e n u m b e r s one and two. Followed

hfiopeds slalomed through the lanes, often bearing entire

by a team of A r c t i c e x p l o r e r s running up expenses in a

i a m i l i e s on their rusting frames. T h e roadside buildings

M o s c o w hotel r o o m , doubtless living on r o o m service, caviar

shimmered in the late afternoon sun like mirages. Ghost

with everything. D a m o n Kronski figured high on the list

Rouses, with tea-drinking spectres seated out at the front.

t o o . A repulsive m a n , with repellent ideals.

C l o s e r to the city c e n t r e the buildings w e r e denser with

T h e local airport, Fez Saiss, had b e e n closed and so

io 1 racts of d e s e r t in b e t w e e n . Dwellings w e r e interspersed

B u t l e r had b e e n forced t o detour the Learjet t o M o h a m m e d

with

V International in Casablanca and r e n t a Land R o v e r there.

A11 were the same sandblasted orange colour, with patches

And n o t a m o d e r n Land R o v e r either. This o n e belonged

of original paint poking through b e l o w the lintels.

garages and video stores, tea shops and pizza parlours.

in the last m i l l e n n i u m and had m o r e holes than a b l o c k of

Artemis felt, as he always did w h e n visiting developing

G r u y e r e c h e e s e . T h e air-conditioning had spluttered its last

nations, mild surprise at the c o e x i s t e n c e of ancient and

over a hundred miles ago and the seat padding was worn

m o d e r n . G o a t herders t o t e d iPods on spangled chains and

so thin that A r t e m i s felt like he was sitting on a j a c k h a m m e r .

wore

If the heat didn't bake him, the vibration would shake him

bolted to their c o r r u g a t e d roofs.

to death.

M a n c h e s t e r U n i t e d shirts. Shacks had satellite dishes

Until r e c e n t t i m e s , Fez had b e e n a place of real i m p o r -

Still, in spite of all these things, a thought s t r u c k A r t e m i s ,

tance, being the depot for the caravan trade from the south

causing the c o r n e r of his m o u t h to t w i t c h in a half smile.

a n d east. It was k n o w n as a c e n t r e of Arab w i s d o m , a holy

That strange creature and her human companion are utterly

< ily, and a place of pilgrimage w h e n the r o u t e to M e c c a

fascinating.

was closed by weather conditions or overrun with bandits.

T h e y w e r e desperate to have this l e m u r and they would n o t give up. He was certain of it.

N o w it had b e c o m e a place w h e r e outlawed E x t i n c t i o n ists did deals with desperate Irish criminals.

A r t e m i s t u r n e d his attention to the city suburbs bouncing

The world is changing more rapidly now than it ever has before,

past his window. T h e d e s e r t highway was suddenly thick

thought A r t e m i s . And I am helping to change it,for the worst.

with traffic as they neared the city c e n t r e . Giant trucks

N o t a c o m f o r t i n g thought, but c o m f o r t was n o t a luxury

thundered past, tyres taller than a g r o w n m a n , their flat-

he e x p e c t e d to enjoy in the near future.

beds stuffed with sullen human cargo. H a r r i e d donkeys'

A r t e m i s ' s m o b i l e phone buzzed as an i n c o m i n g t e x t

hooves clicked on the b r o k e n t a r m a c , their backs piled high

message arrived, having m a d e its way from Fez to Ireland

with sticks, laundry or even furniture. Thousands of dusty

and b a c k to M o r o c c o .

AAAAAAAA

AAAA-yVSA

/ V W AAAA.

AAAA

AAAA

AAAA

178

179

He c h e c k e d the screen and a mirthless smile exposed his incisors. The leather souq. Two hours, read the message. Kronski wished to m a k e the e x c h a n g e in a public place. Apparently the doctor trusts me about as much as I trust him. Smart man.

And so she could understand what A r t e m i s had done — even though she felt it was unnecessary — but that did n o t mean she could forgive him j u s t yet. And h o w could she forget it? It felt as though she had c o m p l e t e l y misjudged their friendship. That won't happen again. O n e thing that Holly was certain of: the m o s t she and

Holly piloted the shuttle as though she w e r e angry with it, slamming the mining craft round bends until its air brakes

Artemis could ever have n o w was what they'd always had grudging r e s p e c t .

s c r e a m e d and its readout needles shot into the r e d . She

Holly patched into the passenger-seat b u b b l e - c a m on the

w o r e a flight h e l m e t hard-wired directly into the shuttle's

shuttle ceiling and was gratified to see A r t e m i s clutching

c a m e r a s , so a wraparound view of the shuttle was available

the armrests on his seat. Perhaps it was the c a m e r a feed

to h e r at all t i m e s ; she could even c h o o s e a r e m o t e view

or perhaps his face was actually g r e e n .

b e a m e d to the shuttle from the tunnel's various cameras. This particular stretch of tunnel saw little traffic and so the

You blew it, Mud Boy, thought Holly, and then, / hope it's your face and not the feed.

m o t i o n - s e n s i t i v e lights would pop on barely five m i l e s before the shuttle e n t e r e d a stretch.

T h e r e was a natural vent in the M o r o c c a n d e s e r t , south of

Holly tried hard to enjoy the e x p e r i e n c e of flying and

Agadir, w h e r e tunnel gas filtered up through half a m i l e

forget everything else. Being a pilot for the L E P was what

of sand. T h e only evidence of this was a slight discoloration

she had d r e a m e d of since childhood. As she cut yet another

of the sand above the vent, which was quickly dispersed by

c o r n e r with a m i l l i m e t r e to spare, and felt the shuttle strain

the winds as soon as it reached the surface. Nevertheless, a

to its limits in h e r hands, the tension drained from h e r

thousand years of the process had left the dunes with curious

body as though absorbed by the craft.

red streaks, which the local villagers swore was blood from

Artemis lied to me and blackmailed me, but he did it for his

the victims of Raisuli, a famous twentieth-century bandit.

mother. A good reason. Who's to say that I would not have done

It was highly unlikely that anyone swallowed these claims,

the same thing myself? If I could have saved my mother, I would

least of all the villagers themselves, but it made g o o d reading

have done whatever I needed to do, including manipulate my

in the guidebooks and d r e w visitors to the o t h e r w i s e un-

friends.

remarkable area.

180

181

Holly drilled the craft through the vent, sealing the

.1 place to start. If Kronski and my younger self do n o t

shuttle's own air filters against the tiny sand particles. She

I u )w up, then we p r o c e e d to the E x t i n c t i o n i s t s ' c o m p o u n d . '

was flying virtually blind with only a three-dimensional

I lolly frowned. ' H m m . This s c h e m e is n o t up to your

m o d e l of the vent to navigate by. Luckily, it was a short

usual

leg of the trip and it t o o k m e r e seconds for the shuttle to

a couple of days to play around with. T i m e is the enemy.'

punch through to the African sky. In spite of the craft's insulated skin, its passengers soon began to feel the heat. Especially M u l c h Diggums. Unlike the o t h e r fairy families, dwarfs w e r e n o t surface creatures and did n o t dream of golden sun on their upturned faces. Anything higher than sea level gave t h e m vertigo.

l

standards and our t i m e is running out. W e d o n ' t have

Y e s , ' agreed A r t e m i s . ' T i m e is the c r u x of this entire

misadventure.' Holly t o o k a n u t r i - b l o c k from the tiny refrigerator and returned to h e r controls. A r t e m i s studied his friend's b a c k , trying to read h e r body language. H u n c h e d , r o u n d e d shoulders and a r m s

M u l c h burped wetly. 'This is t o o high. I d o n ' t like this.

crossed in front of h e r body. She was cutting h e r s e l f off,

H o t , t o o darned h o t . I n e e d to go to the b a t h r o o m . F o r

hostile to c o m m u n i c a t i o n . He n e e d e d to produce s o m e

what I ' m n o t sure exactly. J u s t d o n ' t follow me in t h e r e .

masterstroke to get h i m s e l f b a c k in h e r g o o d b o o k s .

W h a t e v e r you hear, d o n ' t c o m e in.' W h e n a dwarf gave this s o r t of advice, it was wise n o t to ignore it. Holly sent a charge through the windscreen to clear it,

Artemis pressed his nose to the p o r t h o l e , watching the M o r o c c a n desert flash past in streaks of o c h r e and gold. There must be something that Holly wanted. Something she regretted n o t doing that in s o m e way he could facilitate.

then pointed the shuttle's nose north-east towards Fez. W i t h

After a m o m e n t ' s c o n c e n t r a t e d thought, it c a m e to him.

a bit of luck, they could still b e a t little A r t e m i s to the

Hadn't he seen a field holograph pack on one of the storage

rendezvous point.

rails? And wasn't there s o m e o n e to w h o m Holly had never

She set the autopilot and swivelled h e r seat to face

said goodbye?

A r t e m i s , w h o s e face was j u s t returning to its n o r m a l pallor. ' Y o u ' r e sure about the rendezvous point?' she asked. A r t e m i s wasn't sure about anything and this uncertainty

POUCE

PLAZA,

HAVEH CITY, THE

L O W E R ELEHIEHTS

fogged his brain. ' N o t sure, Holly. B u t I clearly r e m e m b e r making the

C o m m a n d e r Julius R o o t was up to the quivering tip of his

e x c h a n g e at the leather souq in Fez. At the very least it is

fungus cigar in paperwork. N o t that it was actual paperwork.

182

183

T h e r e hadn't b e e n any L E P files written on real paper in .1

Julius R o o t leaned b a c k in his swivel chair, allowing the

centaur's age. It was all saved on a crystal and kept in .1

. m o k e from his cigar to f o r m a cloud around his head.

central c o r e s o m e w h e r e in info-space, and apparently n o w

There were days w h e n he felt like hanging up his holster

Foaly's people w e r e trying to g r o w m e m o r y plants, which

l< a g o o d . Days w h e n it felt as though there was nothing to

m e a n t that s o m e day information could be stored in plants

I eep him in the j o b .

or dungheaps, or even the cigar sticking out of R o o t ' s mouth. T h e c o m m a n d e r did n o t understand any of this, n o r did he

The h o l o g r a m ring buzzed on the ceiling like a disco b a l l . Incoming call. R o o t c h e c k e d the caller ID.

want to. L e t Foaly have the worlds of nano and cyber tech

Captain Holly S h o r t .

nologies. He would take the world of everyday L E P prob

R o o t allowed h i m s e l f a rare grin.

lems. And there w e r e plenty of those.

T h e n there w e r e days w h e n he k n e w e x a c t l y what he

F i r s t , his old e n e m y M u l c h D i g g u m s was running riot

had to do.

above g r o u n d . It was a l m o s t as if the d w a r f w e r e taunting

/ have to groom the best people to take over when I am gone.

h i m . His latest c r i m e spree involved breaking i n t o shuttle

People like Captain Kelp, Foaly — gods help me — and Captain

p o r t s , then selling his b o o t y on to e x i l e d fairies living

Holly Short.

a m o n g the humans. At each site he would leave a nice

4

R o o t had hand-picked Holly from the ranks. P r o m o t e d

pyramid o f r e c y c l e d earth i n the middle o f the f l o o r , like

her to captain, the first female to hold the title in the L E P ' s

a calling card.

history. And she had done him proud. Every r e c o n so far

T h e n there w e r e those blasted swear toads. A couple of c o l l e g e graduate w a r l o c k s had granted the p o w e r of speech

had b e e n successful, w i t h o u t a single m i n d - w i p e or t i m e stop.

to the c o m m o n bloated tunnel toad. Naturally, being college

She's the one, Julius, said R o o t ' s inner voice. Smart, fear-

graduates, they had only granted the toads the p o w e r of

less, compassionate, Holly Short will make a splendid captain. Who

bad language. Now, thanks to an unforeseen side effect,

knows, maybe a great commander.

namely fertility, there was a virtual e p i d e m i c of these toads

R o o t wiped the smile from his face. Captain Short did not

running around Haven, offending every citizen they hopped

need to see him smiling proudly, like a doting grandfather. She

into.

needed discipline, order and a healthy dollop of respect/fear

T h e goblin gangs w e r e growing in strength and audacity. O n l y last w e e k they had fireballed a patrol car on its r o u t e through goblin t o w n .

AAAA

AAAA

for her commanding officer. He tapped the a c c e p t pad on his desktop s c r e e n , and the h o l o g r a m ring blasted a Milky Way of stars from its

AAAA

184

185

p r o j e c t o r s that swirled and solidified into the flickering form

of Captain Holly

S h o r t wearing a h u m a n suit.

U n d e r c o v e r obviously. He could see h e r exactly as she was,

' W h y the h o l o g r a m , Short? W h a t ' s w r o n g with a plain Did c o m m u n i c a t o r ? Do you k n o w h o w expensive it is to beam sound and vision through the Earth's c r u s t ? '

but she could n o t see him until he stepped into the foot-

I lolly's image flickered and stared at its feet, then up again.

print of the holographic ring, which he did.

4

'Captain S h o r t , all is well in Hamburg, I trust?' Holly seemed speechless for a m o m e n t , her m o u t h hung open and her hands reached out as if to touch the commander. In her time he was dead, murdered by Opal K o b o i , but here and n o w Julius R o o t was as vital as she r e m e m b e r e d .

1 . . . I j u s t wanted to thank you, Jul— C o m m a n d e r . '

R o o t was surprised. Thank him. F o r m o n t h s of imposiible tasks and double shifts. 1

Thank m e , Captain?This is m o s t irregular. I ' m n o t sure

Tm doing my j o b right if fairies are thanking m e . ' ' Y e s , yes you are,' b l u r t e d Holly's i m a g e . ' Y o u do a

R o o t cleared his throat. 'All is well, Captain?'

line

j o b , m o r e than fine. N o o n e a p p r e c i a t e d — a p p r e c i -

'Yes. Of course, C o m m a n d e r . All is well, for the m o m e n t .

ates

you enough. But I do now. I know what you were

Though it might be an idea to have Retrieval on standby.' R o o t dismissed this idea w i t h a wave of his cigar. ' N o n s e n s e . Your r e c o r d so far speaks for itself. You have never n e e d e d back-up before.' Holly smiled. 'Always a first time.' R o o t blinked, something on the h o l o g r a m ring's floating gaseous readout had caught his eye. ' A r e you calling me from Africa? W h a t are you doing in Africa?' Holly slapped her palm against the instrument panel on her end. ' N o , I ' m in Hamburg, in the observation hide. Stupid machine. T h e projectors are all wrong too. I l o o k about ten years old on the monitor. I ' m going to strangle Foaly when I get back.' R o o t c o u l d n ' t help but smile at that, but he t u c k e d it away quickly.

are trying to do for m e . S o , thank y o u , and I w o n ' t l e t y o u down.' R o o t was surprised to find that he was actually t o u c h e d . It wasn't every day he was faced with such genuine e m o t i o n . Look at me, he thought. Blubbering at a hologram. Wouldn't Foaly love this. 'I . . . em . . . I accept your thanks and I believe them to be heartfelt. Although I don't e x p e c t an expensive hologram call during every mission, just the o n c e will be fine.' 'Understood, Commander.' 'And be careful in Hamburg. M a k e sure to c h e c k your equipment.' T will, C o m m a n d e r , ' said Holly, and R o o t could have sworn she rolled h e r eyes, but it could have b e e n another glitch in the p r o g r a m . 'Anything else, Captain?'

186

187

Holly r e a c h e d out her hand; it s h i m m e r e d and wavered

Artemis squirmed slightly in the co-pilot's chair.

slightly with the m o t i o n . R o o t was n o t sure what he was

4

supposed to do. H o l o g r a m etiquette was very clear: hugging

I lolly nodded. 'Yes. W e ' r e even. B u t your elf-kissing days

and shaking w e r e n o t encouraged. After all, w h o wants to e m b r a c e a pixellated image?

S o , are we even?'

.ii e over.' 'I see,' said A r t e m i s .

B u t still the hand was t h e r e .

'It's n o t a challenge, A r t e m i s . O v e r is over.'

' W i s h m e luck, C o m m a n d e r . O n e officer t o another.'

4

1 know,' said A r t e m i s neutrally.

R o o t g r u n t e d . W i t h any o t h e r subordinate he would have

T h e y sat in silence for a while, watching l o w mountains

suspected toadying, but Captain S h o r t had always impressed

•peed across the desert towards t h e m , then Holly leaned

him with h e r candour.

icross and punched A r t e m i s gently on the shoulder.

He r e a c h e d out his hand and felt a slight tingle as it t o u c h e d Holly's virtual digits. ' G o o d luck, Captain,' he said gruffly. 'And try to t o n e down that m a v e r i c k streak. S o m e day I w o n ' t be around to help you.' ' W i l l do, C o m m a n d e r . Goodbye,' said Holly, and then she was g o n e , but in the seconds before h e r holographic image fizzled out Julius R o o t could have sworn he saw rough holographic tears glint on h e r c h e e k s . Stupid machine, he thought. / will demand that Foaly recalibrate the lot of them.

' T h a n k s , Arty.' 'You are m o s t w e l c o m e . All I did was have an idea.' M u l c h e m e r g e d noisily from the b a t h r o o m , scratching and grunting. ' W o o o - o h , that's better.Thank the gods for soundproofing, eh?' Holly w i n c e d . ' C l o s e the d o o r and let the e x t r a c t o r fan do its work.' M u l c h s l a m m e d the d o o r with a flick of his h e e l . 'I was thinking in t h e r e , you know, rooo-minating.' 'I d o n ' t think I want to hear this.' M u l c h ploughed on regardless. ' T h a t little lemur. T h e

Holly stepped out of the h o l o - b o o t h , which r e s e m b l e d an

silky whatever. You k n o w w h o he reminds me of with that

ancient shower unit with r u b b e r curtain. W i t h the t o u c h

buzz-cut hairdo?'

of a b u t t o n it collapsed and self-sealed into the portable

T h e y had all b e e n thinking it.

briefcase.

' C o m m a n d e r R o o t , ' said Holly, smiling.

T h e r e w e r e tears in h e r eyes as she strapped h e r s e l f into the pilot's chair and flicked off autopilot.

'Yep. A miniature C o m m a n d e r R o o t . ' 'Julius Junior,' said A r t e m i s .

188

T h e y crested the foothills of the Atlas Mountains and Fez was revealed like the heart of the land, its arteries clogged with vehicles. 'Jayjay,' said Holly. T h a t ' s his n a m e . N o w let's go get him.'

PIGEOll DROPPI11GS

CHAPTER II:

She switched on the shuttle's shield and initiated their descent into Fez.

I HE

LEATHER SOUQ,

'uy\f\

F E Z taEDIIlA

H O L L Y inflated

a cham pod and suckered

I it to the shadowy underside of the stone balcony >f$J\

overlooking Fez's leather souq. W h e n the coast was clear, she and Artemis climbed through the

liny access portal, wiggling into the blow-up seats. Artemis's knees knocked against his chin, clicking his teeth. 'Like I said, you're getting tall,' said Holly. A r t e m i s b l e w a raven l o c k from his eye. 'And hairy.' 'Your hair was the only thing that stopped little A r t y recognizing himself, so be glad of it.' Holly had liberated the c h a m - p o d duffel bag from the Tara lock-up along with a single N e u t r i n o handgun and suitable disguises. A r t e m i s w o r e a knee-length b r o w n shirt and thong sandals, while Holly's fairy characteristics were hidden by a headscarf and an abaya. T h e c h a m p o d was an old p o r t a b l e m o d e l and was

190

191

basically a ball w i t h a t r a n s p a r e n t o u t e r layer that was

1

Since birth Kronski has suffered from anosmia,' Artemis

inflated by a tank of c h r o m o - v a r i a b l e gas that c o u l d change

I \ plained. ' H e has no sense of smell. It amuses him to conduct

c o l o u r to i m i t a t e the b a c k g r o u n d . T h a t was a b o u t as high-

his business here, as whoever he happens to be meeting will

tech as it got. No directional equipment, no on-board

be virtually assaulted by the smell from the acid vats. T h e i r

weaponry, j u s t a o n e - w a y t o u c h s c r e e n and t w o c r a m p e d

concentration is shattered and his is unaffected.'

seats.

' Clever.'

' N o air filters?' w o n d e r e d A r t e m i s .

'Fiendishly so. T h e area is a tourist attraction, so many

'Unfortunately not,' said Holly, pulling h e r scarf across h e r n o s e . ' W h a t is that smell?'

people will pass through, but none hang around for t o o long.' ' P l e n t y o f spectators but n o t many witnesses.'

' D i l u t e d pigeon droppings,' replied A r t e m i s . 'Highly

'Apart from the locals, and Kronski doubtless has a dozen

acidic and, of c o u r s e , plentiful. T h e tannery w o r k e r s use it

f those on his payroll, and they will see what he wants

to soften the hides before dyeing them.'

diem to see.' A r t e m i s leaned forward, his nose brushing the

T h e leather souq spread out b e l o w them was a spectacular sight. Huge stone vats were arranged across the court-

plastic portal. 'And here is our fiendish Extinctionist now. Right on cue.'

yard in h o n e y c o m b patterns, each filled with either acidic

T h e souq b e l o w was thronged with leather workers and

softeners or vegetable dyes such as saffron and henna. T h e

merchants, long since inured to the sharp odour of the vats,

leather workers stood in the dye vats, soaking each skin thor-

(i roups of die-hard tourists flitted through, d e t e r m i n e d to

oughly, including their own, and, when the hide had attained

Capture the scene on their cameras but unwilling to suffer

the desired hue, it was stretched on a nearby rooftop to dry.

the heat and smells for longer than a few shutter clicks. And

' P e o p l e say that H e n r y Ford invented the production

among t h e m all, serene and smiling, strode D o c t o r D a m o n

line,' said A r t e m i s . 'This place has b e e n going for six hundred

Kronski, dressed in a preposterous tailored camouflage suit,

years.'

c o m p l e t e with a general's peaked hat.

T h e souq was enclosed by high walls painted white but m o t t l e d by dye and dust. O c h r e stains spread across the ancient b r i c k like the faded map of s o m e e x o t i c archipelago.

Holly was sickened by the m a n and h o w he obviously relished his surroundings. ' L o o k at him. He loves this.'

' W h y did Kronski c h o o s e the souq?' w o n d e r e d Holly.

A r t e m i s did n o t c o m m e n t . He had sold the l e m u r and

' T h e stink is almost unbearable, and I say that as a friend

he judged that a c r i m e w o r s e than Kronski's. Instead, he

o f M u l c h Diggums.'

searched the souq for a smaller version of himself.

8 *8 o 4 8

- • ©

- c ^ e8

*8 o 4 8

£

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193

' T h e r e I am. West c o r n e r / Holly switched h e r gaze to locate young A r t e m i s . He

'I hand over Jayjay. T h e n we go our separate ways, simple a s (hat. T h e r e w e r e n o complications.'

stood almost hidden by a huge tiled urn b r i m m i n g with

'Perhaps we should wait until after the handover?'

m i n t - g r e e n dye. T h e sinking sun was a c h o p p e d silver disc

' N o . W h a t happens afterwards is an unknown quantity.

on its surface. A r t e m i s smiled. / remember standing in that exact spot, so the glare would distract Kronski. It is the only vat touched by the sun at this time. A little payback for the smell. Childish, perhaps, but then I was a child. Tt looks like your m e m o r y is accurate on this o c c a s i o n / said Holly. A r t e m i s c o u l d n ' t help but be relieved. His r e c o l l e c t i o n had b e e n hit-and-miss up to now.

At least n o w we have s o m e foreknowledge.' Holly studied the scene with a veteran's eye. ' W h e r e ' s Butler?' Artemis t o u c h e d another point on the s c r e e n . It rippled slightly, flexed and enlarged his selection. 'In that window. Watching over everything.' T h e w i n d o w was a high rectangle in the flaking white wall, painted black by shade and depth. 'You think you're invisible, d o n ' t you, my friend?' Holly

He straightened suddenly. Hit-and-miss. How could he not

whispered, then highlighted the w i n d o w with a t h u m b and

have seen it? These memory malfunctions could mean only one thing.

activated a night-vision filter. In the sudden g l o w of body

No t i m e to pursue that thought now. T h e e x c h a n g e was

heat, a hulking figure appeared in the window, still as stone,

afoot.

e x c e p t for a beating h e a r t .

A r t e m i s tapped the t o u c h - s c r e e n with his index finger,

T r e m e m b e r that B u t l e r w a n t e d to m a k e the e x c h a n g e ,

expanding a section. Closing in on a plinth at the c e n t r e

but I talked him out of it. He's up there right now, fuming.'

of the souq. T h e l o w stone tabletop was grooved and curved

' B u t l e r fuming is n o t something I want to see up close.'

from centuries of being piled high with hides. W e t henna

A r t e m i s laid a hand on h e r shoulder. ' T h e n d o n ' t get

glistened on its surface and dribbled down its sides, like

t o o close. A distraction is all we n e e d . I wish there had

b l o o d from a head injury.

b e e n an L E P j u m p s u i t in that lock-up. If you w e r e invis-

' T h e r e , ' said A r t e m i s . 'That's w h e r e we agreed to m a k e the e x c h a n g e . Kronski lays the suitcase on the r o c k . I hand it over.' ' H i m . He's a m a l e , and his n a m e is Jayjay,' said Holly, making it real.

ible to m a n and m a c h i n e , I would be m o r e c o m f o r t a b l e with this.' Holly twisted h e r chin, calling h e r m a g i c , and blobs of h e r disappeared until there was nothing left in the seat but haze.

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194

' D o n ' t worry, Artemis,' she said, her voice sounding almost

A r t e m i s - a l l o w e d h i m s e l f a m o m e n t to m e d i t a t e . He

r o b o t i c because of the vibration. 'I have b e e n on missions

closed his eyes, taking shallow breaths through his m o u t h . Very well, he thought. To business, Doctor Kronski.

before. You are n o t the only smart one in the souq.'

I uckily the d o c t o r was e n o r m o u s , and, as A r t e m i s made

A r t e m i s was n o t in the least c h e e r e d by this. 'All the m o r e reason to be careful. I wish there'd b e e n a set of wings

In

in the t e r m i n a l . W h a t sort of lock-up doesn't have wings?'

the opposite diagonal.

' P o t luck,' said Holly, h e r voice floating through the expandable seal o f the p o r t a l . ' W e g o t what w e got.'

way through the souq, he quickly spotted Kronski on

Look at that poseur. A camouflage suit! Does he honestly believe himself a general in some war against the animal kingdom?

' W e got what we got,' repeated A r t e m i s , following Holly's

Artemis h i m s e l f d r e w surprised stares from the locals,

progress down the steps and across the courtyard with the

lourists w e r e n o t unusual in the souq, but l o n e ten-year-

infra-red filter. 'Terrible grammar.'

old boys in formal suits, carrying m o n k e y cages, w e r e rare in any part of the w o r l d .

Ten-year-old A r t e m i s felt as though he had b e e n dipped in

It is a simple matter. Walk to the centre and set down the cage.

a j a r of honey and left to bake on the surface of the sun.

But even walking through this souq was n o t simple.

His g a r m e n t s had m o u l d e d themselves to his skin and a

W o r k e r s bustled through the lanes b e t w e e n vats, laden with

t o r n a d o of flies revolved round his head. A r t e m i s ' s throat

dozens of sopping hides. Strings of dye flew through the

was sandpaper dry, and he could hear his breath and pulse

striping the clothes o f tourists and o t h e r w o r k e r s .

as though he w e r e wearing a h e l m e t . And the stench. T h e stench was a h o t wind gusting in his nose and eyes.

A r t e m i s was forced to tread carefully and give way several times b e f o r e he eventually r e a c h e d the small clearing at the centre.

/ must persevere, he thought with a focused d e t e r m i n a -

Kronski was there before h i m , p e r c h e d on the tiny stool

tion beyond his years. Father needs me. Also, I refuse to be cowed

that folded out from the top of his hunting cane, puffing

by this odious man.

on a thin cigar.

T h e souq was a confusing kaleidoscope of pumping limbs,

'Apparently, I ' m missing out on half the e x p e r i e n c e , ' he

splashing dye and evening shadows. And, from A r t e m i s ' s

said, as though they w e r e simply continuing a conversation.

point of view, things w e r e even m o r e confusing. E l b o w s

' T h e best part of a cigar is the aroma, and I c a n ' t smell a

flashed past, urns rang like bells and the air was shattered

thing.'

by sharp bolts of F r e n c h and Arabic above his head.

Artemis was silently infuriated.The man looked completely

197

196

comfortable, with barely a drop of sweat on his brow. He

I mii n o t his whereabouts. His fingers twitched once m o r e and

forced himself to smile.

ih< n were still.

' D o you have the money, D a m o n ? ' At least he could annoy the g o o d d o c t o r by neglecting his title.

1

Very well, Ah-temis. Let's get this business over with. I ' m

iik

K r o n s k i did n o t s e e m annoyed. ' G o t i t r i g h t h e r e , Ah-temis,' he said, patting his breast p o c k e t . 'A hundred

'( )l c o u r s e . And I ' m sure you appreciate that I will n e e d to s e e a sample of your currency.'

thousand is such a trifling a m o u n t , I managed to stuff every last n o t e into my suit p o c k e t . '

you appreciate that I need to inspect the merchandise.'

1

Why, of course.' Kronski wiggled his hand into a p o c k e t withdrew a fat envelope b r i m m i n g with purple five-

iiMI

A r t e m i s could n o t resist a j i b e . 'And what a lovely suit it is.'

I ii n id red-euro n o t e s . He carelessly selected o n e and passed II across to A r t e m i s .

Kronski's v i o l e t - c o l o u r e d glasses flashed in the last rays

l

( J o n n a smell it, are you, A h - t e m i s ? '

of the sun. ' U n l i k e your o w n , my boy, which appears to be

l

N o t exactly.' A r t e m i s flipped open his m o b i l e phone

losing its character in this heat.'

.IIKI

It was t r u e ; A r t e m i s felt that the only thing holding him upright was the dried sweat on his spine. He was hungry, tired and irritable.

selected a U V and m a g n e t i c c u r r e n c y scanner from its

augmented m e n u . He passed the n o t e in front of the purple light, c h e c k i n g for the w a t e r m a r k and m e t a l strip. K r o n s k i p r e s s e d a hand to his h e a r t . T am w o u n d e d ,

Focus. The end justifies the sacrifices.

hoy, i n j u r e d , that you should t h i n k I w o u l d c h e a t y o u .

' W e l l , obviously I have the lemur, so can we please

Why, it w o u l d c o s t m o r e than a h u n d r e d thousand to

proceed?'

Forge a h u n d r e d t h o u s a n d . A g o o d set of plates c o s t s t w i c e

Kronski's fingers t w i t c h e d , and A r t e m i s could guess what he was thinking.

A r t e m i s closed the p h o n e . T am n o t a trusting p e r s o n ,

Take the lemur from the boy. Just grab it. No need to part with the hundred thousand.

case

you're

D a m o n . Y o u ' l l learn that about m e . ' He placed the cage on the stone plinth. 'Now, your turn.'

A r t e m i s decided to nip this kind of thinking in the bud. 'In

that.'

entertaining

any

rash

notions

In that m o m e n t , Kronski's entire attitude changed. His

of

offhand nature vanished, replaced with a giddiness. He smiled

r e n e g i n g o n o u r a g r e e m e n t , l e t m e say j u s t o n e w o r d t o

and tittered, tiptoeing to the cage like a child to the Christmas

y o u : Butler'

tree.

O n e word was enough. Kronski knew Butler's reputation,

Perhaps a normal child, thought A r t e m i s sourly. Christmas

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198

morning holds no surprises for me, thanks to the X-ray scanner

buttons, w h i c h Holly was n o w sprinkling into the un-

on my mobile phone.

attended dye vats around the souq, with a double helping

Obviously the p r o s p e c t of extinguishing the life spark of another species e x c i t e d Kronski hugely. He leaned over the cage daintily, squinting through the airholes. ' Y e s , yes. All appears to be in order. B u t I will n e e d to take a c l o s e r look.' ' O n e hundred thousand euro buys you all the closer looks you need.' Kronski tossed the envelope to A r t e m i s . ' O h , take it, you t i r e s o m e boy. You really distress m e , A h - t e m i s . A boy like you c a n ' t have many friends.' 'I've g o t o n e friend,' r e t o r t e d A r t e m i s , p o c k e t i n g the money. 'And he's bigger than you.' Kronski o p e n e d the b o x j u s t wide enough t o grab the l e m u r by the scruff of the n e c k . He hoisted the animal aloft like a trophy, checking him from all angles. A r t e m i s t o o k a step b a c k , casting suspicious glances around the souq. Perhaps nothing is going to happen, he thought. Perhaps those creatures were not as resourceful as I believed. I may have to be content with the hundred thousand for now. And then the resourceful creatures arrived.

underneath Butler's window. T h o u g h she was invisible, Holly t o o k e x t r a care with her m o v e m e n t s , as shielding w i t h o u t a suit was wild m a g i c indeed. Any sudden gestures or collisions could cause h e r body to vent magical fireworks, which would l o o k strange igniting out of thin air. S o , softly, softly was the way to m o v e . Holly dropped the last of the b u t t o n s , feeling totally vulnerable in spite of h e r invisibility. / miss Foaly's guidance, she thought. It's nice to have an allseeing eye. As if he could read h e r m i n d , A r t e m i s ' s voice c a m e from the mike-bud in h e r ear. A n o t h e r gift from the lock-up. ' K r o n s k i is opening the cage. G e t ready to b l o w the buttons.' 'All set. I ' m at the n o r t h - w e s t c o r n e r if Jayjay tries to run.' T see you on the filter. D e t o n a t e at will.' Holly c l i m b e d into an e m p t y vat and fixed h e r gaze on Kronski. He had the l e m u r out now, holding it away from his body. Perfect. She ran a finger along the small strip in h e r hand, until

Holly did n o t have wings to fly but that did n o t m e a n she

all the tiny lights t u r n e d g r e e n . A o n e - w o r d message scrolled

couldn't cause havoc. T h e r e had b e e n no weapons in the

across the strip.

L E P lock-up beyond the single N e u t r i n o , but there had

Detonate?

b e e n s o m e mining equipment, including a few dozen blaster

Absolutely, thought Holly, and pressed the yes b o x .

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201

A vat blew, sending a c o l u m n of r e d dye shooting six

T h e last drops of dye fell, and slowly the chaos r e t r e a t e d .

m e t r e s into the air. Several m o r e vats quickly followed suit,

T h e leather w o r k e r s shook their heads in wonder, then

thumping like m o r t a r s , hurling their c o n t e n t s into the

began to curse their l u c k . A day's profit g o n e .

M o r o c c o sky.

Kronski squealed for several seconds after the dust had

A symphony of colour, thought A r t e m i s from his p e r c h . Butler's view is totally obscured.

cleared, holding the n o t e like an opera singer. A r t e m i s grinned nastily. Tt isn't over until the fat lady

B e l o w in the souq, p a n d e m o n i u m was instantaneous.

sings, so I suppose it's over.'

T h e leather w o r k e r s roared and shouted, oohing like spec-

T h e d o c t o r was snapped out of it by A r t e m i s ' s t o n e s .

tators at a fireworks show as each n e w c o l o u r e d fountain

He c o m p o s e d himself, standing on t w o feet and breathing

erupted. S o m e realized that their precious leathers w e r e

deeply as the red spots r e t r e a t e d from his c h e e k s . It was

being coated with the w r o n g hues and began to feverishly

n o t until he tried to w i p e the gunk from his hand that he

gather their wares and t o o l s . W i t h i n seconds it was raining

realized the l e m u r was no l o n g e r in his grasp.

gouts of dye, and the spaces b e t w e e n the vats w e r e thronged with frantic w o r k e r s and spooked tourists. Young A r t e m i s s t o o d s t o c k still, ignoring the flying dye, his gaze fixed on D a m o n K r o n s k i and the l e m u r in his fist. Watch the animal. They want the animal.

As he stared in disbelief at his fingers, Kronski felt the stuff coating his fingers harden into a glowing gauntlet. ' W h a t have you d o n e , A r t e m i s ? ' Ah, thought A r t e m i s . Suddenly you can pronounce my name. T have done nothing, D a m o n . I delivered the l e m u r ; you

Kronski squealed with each explosion, balancing on a single leg like a scared ballet dancer.

lost h i m . T h e p r o b l e m s h e r e are all yours.' Kronski was livid. He t o r e off his glasses to reveal red-

Priceless, thought A r t e m i s , and shot a few seconds of

r i m m e d eyes. 'You have t r i c k e d m e , F o w l . Somehow, you

video on his p h o n e . S o m e t h i n g else was about to happen;

are a participant in this. I cannot host an E x t i n c t i o n i s t

he felt sure of it.

c o n f e r e n c e without a strong opening. T h e e x e c u t i o n of that

And he was right. A r t e m i s had a vague impression that the earth e x p l o d e d in front of Kronski's feet. M u d mushr o o m e d upwards, something m o v e d in the curtain of earth and then the l e m u r was g o n e .

glowed slightly in the evening shadows.

AAAA

A r t e m i s ' s phone b e e p e d and he glanced at the s c r e e n . A b r i e f t e x t from Butler. Mission accomplished.

D o c t o r Kronski was left holding a blob of slime, which

/VVSA

l e m u r was my big hello, everyone!

He p o c k e t e d the m o b i l e phone and smiled broadly at Kronski.

/VV\A

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203

'A strong opening. I may be able to help you with that. F o r a p r i c e , naturally/

Butler. Don't do it, old friend. I know you were never comfortable with my schemes. In three quick strides, the bodyguard moved to Holly's

A r t e m i s the elder sat in the c h a m pod, watching events

vat and netted the e l f in his blanket. She struggled and fought,

unfurling below. Everything w e n t exactly to plan, with the

but never had a chance against Butler's formidable strength.

e x c e p t i o n of the dye vats, w h i c h actually e x c e e d e d Artemis's

In ten seconds, Holly was hog-tied and hoisted over the body-

expectations.

guard's shoulder. In five m o r e seconds Butler was out of the

Butler's view is completely blocked, he thought. And then he

gate and lost in the gathering crowds of the medina.

froze suddenly. Of course! I wouldn't have placed Butler in that

It all happened so quickly that A r t e m i s ' s j a w did n o t

window at all. I would have put a decoy there, as it is one of the

have t i m e to drop. O n e m o m e n t he was in c o n t r o l , enjoying

fve logical places for a sniper to set up. In fact, I would have put

the smugness that c o m e s with being the smartest p e r s o n

a decoy in all fve spots and then have Butler hide himself some-

in the m e t a p h o r i c a l r o o m . T h e n e x t , he was crashing b a c k

where on the souq floor, ready to step in if those pesky lemur-nappers

to earth, having sacrificed his queen for a r o o k , realizing

showed up again, which they very well could, as they seem to know

he was up against s o m e b o d y j u s t as s m a r t as he was, only

my every move. I, Artemis Fowl, have been bamboozled by myself.

t w i c e as ruthless.

Suddenly, a horrifying thought s t r u c k h i m . ' H o l l y ! ' he shouted into the m i c r o p h o n e pad adhered to his thumb. ' A b o r t ! A b o r t ! ' ' W h a t . . .' c a m e the crackly response. ' T h e noise . . . I think . . . damaged.'

He felt the pallor of desperation c r e e p across his forehead, leaving pins and needles in its wake. They have Holly. The Extinctionists will put her on trial on charges of breathing human air. A thought o c c u r r e d to h i m . Every defendant is entitled to

T h e n a few seconds of w h i t e noise, sharp snaps and

a good lawyer.

silence. It was t o o late. A r t e m i s could only press his face against the screen and watch helplessly as o n e of the leather w o r k e r s shrugged off his shoulder blanket and straightened, revealing h i m s e l f to be far taller than he had previously appeared. It was, of c o u r s e , Butler, with a hand-held infra-red scanner extended before him.

/VW\

AAAAWSA

/VVSA

AAAA

AAAA

AAAA

AAAA

205

Artemis was glad of the thinking space. By the t i m e the I and R o v e r was cleared through the reinforced gates, he had any wrinkles in his strategy straightened out and he'd used the spare t w o minutes to plot one of the r o m a n c e novels he occasionally w r o t e under the pseudonym Violet

GOFLE FOREVER

C H A P T E R 12:

Tsirblou. A guard with bulk to m a t c h Butler's waved t h e m through underneath a walkway arch in the four-metre-high wall. Artemis kept his eyes open on the way in, noting the a r m e d guards patrolling the t e n - a c r e c o m p o u n d , and the position

LA

DomAinE

DES

HommES,

ExTincrionisTs'

compounD,FEZ

of the g e n e r a t o r hut and the staff quarters. Information is power. T h e residential chalets w e r e built i n the style o f

ARTE Kl IS

the younger agreed t o a c c o m -

Californian beachouses, flat roofs and plenty of glass, clus-

pany D o c t o r Kronski to his gated c o m p o u n d

t e r e d around a m a n - m a d e b e a c h , c o m p l e t e with wave

near the medina. Kronski's Land R o v e r was

machine and lifeguard. T h e r e was a large c o n f e r e n c e c e n t r e

considerably m o r e luxurious than Artemis's

in the middle of the c o m p o u n d , with a scaffold-clad spire

r e n t e d m o d e l , c o m p l e t e with powerful air-conditioning,

jutting from its r o o f . T w o m e n w e r e p e r c h e d o n the

water c o o l e r and white-tiger upholstery.

scaffolding, putting the finishing touches to a brass icon on

A r t e m i s ran a finger through the fur and was n o t surprised to find that it was real.

the spire's tip. And even though m o s t of the i c o n was wrapped in canvas, A r t e m i s could see enough to k n o w what

' N i c e seats,' he c o m m e n t e d drily.

it was. A human a r m with the world in its fist. T h e symbol

Kronski did n o t answer. He hadn't spoken m u c h since

o f the Extinctionists.

losing the lemur, e x c e p t to m u t t e r to himself, cursing the

K r o n s k i ' s driver parked in front of the c o m p o u n d ' s

unfairness of it all. It didn't s e e m to b o t h e r him that his

grandest chalet and the d o c t o r led the way inside word-

suit was covered in dye, w h i c h was transferring itself to

lessly. He flapped a hand towards a hide-covered sofa, and

his expensive upholstery.

disappeared into his b e d r o o m .

Though it t o o k barely five minutes to reach the compound,

Artemis was hoping for a shower and a change of clothes,

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but apparently Kronski was t o o upset for courtesy, so Artemis

Kronski entered the r o o m showered and wearing a flowing

was forced to tug at the collar of his itchy shirt and wait for

kaftan. His eyes w e r e r e d - r i m m e d , as though he'd b e e n

his host's return.

crying.

Kronki's r e c e p t i o n lounge was a m a c a b r e space. O n e wall was covered with certificates of e x t i n c t i o n , c o m p l e t e

' S i t down, Ah-temis,' he said, gesturing towards the sofa with a hide-bound fly swatter.

with photographs of the unfortunate animals and the dates

A r t e m i s eyed the seat. ' N o . I think I'll stand.'

on which the Extinctionists managed to m u r d e r the last

Kronski sank into an office chair. ' O h , I get it. G r o w n up sofa. It's difficult to be taken seriously w h e n your feet

one of the particular species. A r t e m i s b r o w s e d the p h o t o wall. H e r e was a Japanese sea lion, and a Yangtze river dolphin. A G u a m flying fox

d o n ' t t o u c h the ground.' T h e d o c t o r r u b b e d his eyes with stubby t h u m b s , then donned his trademark glasses.

and a Bali tiger.

' Y o u have n o idea w h a t it's b e e n like for m e , A h - t e m i s .

All g o n e forever. The only way to see these creatures was to somehow build up

H o u n d e d from c o u n t r y t o c o u n t r y b e c a u s e o f m y b e l i e f s ,

enough momentum to travel faster than the speed of light and go

like s o m e c o m m o n c r i m i n a l . A n d n o w that I have finally

back in time.

found s o m e w h e r e to call h o m e , n o w that I have p e r s u a d e d

T h e r e w e r e further h o r r o r s in the r o o m , all labelled for educational purposes. T h e sofa was upholstered with the pelts of Falkland Island wolves. T h e base of a standing lamp was fashioned from the skull of a w e s t e r n b l a c k

the c o m m i t t e e t o m e e t h e r e , I l o s e m y trial animal. T h a t l e m u r was the c e n t r e p i e c e o f the e n t i r e c o n f e r e n c e . ' Kronski's voice was steady and he s e e m e d to have r e c o v e r e d h i m s e l f since his b r e a k d o w n at the leather souq. ' T h e Extinctionists' c o m m i t t e e m e m b e r s are very powerful

rhinoceros. A r t e m i s struggled to maintain his c o m p o s u r e .

m e n , Ah-temis. They are accustomed to c o m f o r t and conven-

/ need to get out of here as quickly as possible.

ience. M o r o c c o is hardly convenient. I had to build this

But the faint voice of his c o n s c i e n c e r e m i n d e d him that

compound to entice them down here, and promise a big

leaving would n o t m e a n that this place no l o n g e r e x i s t e d ,

opening to the conference. And now all I have to show is a

and selling the strange creature to Kronski would only draw

shining hand.'

m o r e people t o it.

Kronski brandished his hand, which was largely slime

A r t e m i s conjured a picture of his father in his m i n d .

'All is n o t lost, D o c t o r , ' said A r t e m i s soothingly. 'I can

Whatever it takes. Whatever I have to do.

/WSA

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free, but did s e e m to g l o w faintly.

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provide you with something that will rejuvenate your society

'Diamonds.'

and m a k e it globally r e l e v a n t /

Kronski pouted. T w o n ' t pay a single stone until I verify

Kronski's frown was sceptical, but he leaned forward, a r m s slightly o u t s t r e t c h e d . His face says no, thought A r t e m i s . But his body language says yes.

the authenticity of your product.' 'That's fair.' 'That's mighty a c c o m m o d a t i n g o f you, F o w l . H o w d o you k n o w I w o n ' t double-cross you? After all, I ' m pretty

' W h a t are you selling, A h - t e m i s ? '

sure that you had a hand in whatever happened b a c k at the

A r t e m i s o p e n e d the gallery on his p h o n e , selecting a

souq. Payback is fair play w h e r e I c o m e from.'

photograph. ' T h i s , ' he said, passing the phone to K r o n s k i . T h e d o c t o r studied the photograph and the scepticism in his eyes g r e w m o r e p r o n o u n c e d .

'You might double-cross m e , D a m o n . B u t you w o n ' t double-cross Butler. You are n o t a stupid man.' Kronski g r u n t e d , impressed. T g o t to hand it to you, boy. You have all the angles figured. You present ' e m well

' W h a t is this? P h o t o manipulation?'

too.' He stared absently at his glowing hand. 'You ever think

' N o . G e n u i n e . This creature is real.'

it strange, A h - t e m i s , h o w a kid like you winds up going

' C o m e o n , Ah-temis. W h a t w e ' v e got h e r e are latex and

eyeball to eyeball with an old c r o o k like m e ? '

b o n e implants. Nothing m o r e . ' A r t e m i s nodded. 'That's a fair reaction. So you d o n ' t pay until you're satisfied.'

'I don't understand the question,' said Artemis truthfully. Kronski clapped his hands and laughed. 'It delights m e , Ah-temis,' he said, 'that a boy such as you exists. It makes

T already paid.'

my day.' T h e laughter stopped suddenly, as though cut off

'You paid for a lemur,' A r t e m i s c o u n t e r e d . ' T h i s is an

by a guillotine. 'Now, h o w soon can I inspect the c r e a t u r e ? '

undiscovered species. Possibly a threat to mankind. This is

'Immediately,' replied A r t e m i s . '

what the Extinctionists are all about. Imagine h o w many

' G o o d . W e l l , t e x t your m a n t o c o m e hither. Let's say

m e m b e r s will c l a m o u r t o donate t o your c h u r c h w h e n you

it takes him thirty m i n u t e s to g e t h e r e , a n o t h e r t e n to

uncover this threat.'

c l e a r security. We can m e e t him in the grand lodge in o n e

Kronski nodded. 'You put t o g e t h e r a g o o d a r g u m e n t for a ten-year-old. H o w m u c h do I pay?'

hour.' T said immediately,' said A r t e m i s , clicking his fingers.

'You pay five million euro. Non-negotiable.'

B u t l e r stepped out from behind a curtain, a Kevlar duffel

'Cash?'

bag under o n e a r m .

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K r o n s k i squealed briefly, t h e n r o l l e d his eyes in frus-

' Y e s , ' said K r o n s k i , a l m o s t foaming at the m o u t h . 'Absolutely, yes. O p e n the bag.'

tration. 'I can't c o n t r o l t h a t . . . E v e r since the koala in Cleveland.

B u t l e r removed his hand and A r t e m i s unzipped the duffel, exposing the figure inside.

It's so embarassing . . .' File and save, thought A r t e m i s . Koala in Cleveland.

Kronski stared into the m i s m a t c h e d eyes. Ran a hand

' Anyway,' continued the doctor, ' h o w did he get in h e r e ? '

across the inhumanly wide brow, tugged o n e of the ears,

B u t l e r shrugged. T c a m e in the same way you did,

then staggered to the office bar, pouring h i m s e l f a glass of water with shaky hands.

Doctor.' 'You w e r e in the Land Rover,' breathed K r o n s k i . 'Very

'Five million at today's m a r k e t price,' he said. 'You said five and we agreed. No upping the p r i c e now.'

clever.' ' N o t really. M o r e lax on your part than clever on ours.'

A r t e m i s smiled. T h e d o c t o r was h o o k e d .

'I will r e m e m b e r that. Do you have the merchandise

'Five million,' he said. 'Plus expenses.'

with you?' Butler's m o u t h tightened and A r t e m i s k n e w that he was

Artemis the elder rode back to the landing site on a collapsible

pushed to the limits of his loyalty by this transaction. T h e

LEP s c o o t e r designed to resemble a 1 9 5 0 s human Lambretta.

l e m u r had b e e n bad enough, but this female in the bag was

T h e resemblance was only b u m p e r deep, as there were n o t

s o m e kind o f p e r s o n .

many Lambrettas that c a m e equipped with clean nuclear

Wordlessly, the bodyguard placed the duffel on the desk. A r t e m i s tugged on the zipper, but B u t l e r stopped h i m .

batteries, G n o m m i s h satellite navigation and self-destruct buttons.

' S h e has s o m e kind of hypnotizing skills. I o n c e m e t a

T h e Ifrane road outside the imperial city was part of the

guy in Laos w h o could put the w h a m m y on you, b u t

fertile Fez river basin and was lined with olive groves and

nothing like this. She t r i e d it on outside the souq and I

g o l f courses.

nearly ran into a c a m e l , so I taped h e r m o u t h . A l s o , as we

Ancient and modern. Coexisting.

know, she can t u r n invisible. W h e n I o p e n e d the bag first,

O v e r h e a d the stars s e e m e d c l o s e r and fiercer than at

she w a s n ' t t h e r e . I think h e r j u i c e is running o u t , though.

h o m e in Ireland, shining down like stadium lights, as though

T h e r e could be m o r e stunts — w h o k n o w s what t r i c k s she

Africa w e r e s o m e h o w c l o s e r to the rest of the universe.

has hidden in those p o i n t e d ears? A r e you prepared to take

/ lost her. I lost Holly.

that r i s k ? '

B u t he did have a plan. A half-decent plan. All it n e e d e d

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was a bit of fairy t e c h n o l o g y to open a few doors and then

L E P are n o t my c o m r a d e s . We had a deal; I g e t you the

there was still a c h a n c e . B e c a u s e , without Holly, all was

little furry fellow and you g e t me a trolley of L E P t e c h

lost. T h e r e would b e n o future for any o f t h e m .

goodies. J o b done, b o t h parties happy.' At that m o m e n t , Jayjay poked his head round the bath-

It t o o k almost an h o u r to find the particular g o l f course

r o o m door.

w h e r e Holly had parked the L E P shuttle. N o t that there

' W h a t ' s he doing in t h e r e ? '

was m u c h evidence of a craft on the spot besides a slightly

M u l c h grinned. 'Take t w o guesses.'

flat plane of sand in the bunker. Holly had nosed the shuttle

' L e m u r s cannot use advanced plumbing.'

deep into the dry sand and left the shield p o w e r e d on.

' S e e for yourself. W h a t e v e r ' s in there, I ' m blaming Jayjay.'

A r t e m i s only found it h i m s e l f with the help of the bike's

He clicked his furry fingers and the l e m u r ran along his

navigation systems. He collapsed the s c o o t e r into a Frisbee-sized disc and c l i m b e d down through the r o o f hatch. M u l c h Diggums was idly swivelling h i m s e l f in the pilot's chair. 'That's my scooter, M u d Boy,' he said. ' T h a t c a m e off the trolley, so I take it with m e . ' A r t e m i s shut the hatch behind h i m . ' W h e r e ' s the lemur? W h e r e ' s Jayjay?' M u l c h answered these questions with s o m e of his own. ' W h e r e ' s Holly? Have you lost h e r ? ' 'Yes,' A r t e m i s admitted miserably. ' T h e boy o u t w i t t e d m e . H e k n e w w e would c o m e for the lemur. H e sacrificed it for Holly.' ' S m a r t , ' said M u l c h . 'Anyway, I ' m off. See you . . .' ' S e e you? See you? O n e of your fairy c o m r a d e s is in danger and you're j u s t going to d e s e r t h e r ? ' M u l c h raised his palms. 'Hey, calm down, M u d Boy. T h e

a r m , on to his head. ' S e e . H e accepts responsibility.' M u l c h frowned. ' Y o u ' r e not going to trade this fellow for Captain S h o r t , are you?' ' N o point,' said A r t e m i s , acccessing the L E P c e n t r a l database. ' I t w o u l d be like trying to trade a hairpin for Excalibur.' M u l c h c h e w e d his lip. ' I ' m familiar with the E x c a l i b u r story, so I k n o w what you're trying to say t h e r e . A hairpin is useless, E x c a l i b u r is wonderful, and so on. B u t in s o m e instances a hairpin is e x t r e m e l y useful. Now, if you had said a rubber hairpin. Do you see what I ' m getting at? A r t e m i s ignored h i m , tapping furiously at the v-board that had appeared in front of h i m . He n e e d e d to k n o w everything he could about the Extinctionists and Foaly had an extensive file on t h e m . M u l c h ticked Jayjay under the chin. T was getting pretty fond of Captain S h o r t , against my b e t t e r j u d g e m e n t . I suppose I could dig in and rescue her.'

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This was a genuine offer and a fair point, so A r t e m i s spared a m o m e n t to address it. ' N o t possible. Kronski has seen the tunnel rescue before and he w o n ' t fall for it again. At any rate, you wouldn't survive

the animals he had hunted to e x t i n c t i o n . He always awoke smiling. Everything has to he perfect. This is the biggest night of my life. Thank you, little Ah-temis.

the temperature during the day. Even underground you

T h e r e was a lot riding on this c o n f e r e n c e , and the banquet

wouldn't be safe. T h e earth is so dry that cracks can pene-

generally set the t o n e for the entire w e e k e n d . Pull off s o m e -

trate up to fifteen metres in open ground. O n e pinprick of

11 ling big at the banquet trial and the m e m b e r s would be

midday sun and you would crisp like an old b o o k in a furnace.'

buzzing about it for days. T h e I n t e r n e t would be alive with

M u l c h w i n c e d . 'Now, you see, that image w o r k s really well. So what are you going to d o ? ' A r t e m i s used the advanced fairy t e c h n o l o g y to print off a l e o p a r d - p r i n t card w i t h an E x t i n c t i o n i s t s ' h o l o g r a m flashing silver and purple in the c e n t r e .

(batter. And it doesn't get any bigger than a brand-new sentient species. The Extinctionists are about to go global. And j u s t in t i m e . Truth be told, the Extinctionists w e r e old news. Subscriptions w e r e dropping off and, for the first

' I ' m going to the Extinctionists' banquet tonight,' he said,

lime since its inception, the c o n f e r e n c e was n o t a total sell-

flicking the card with his forefinger. 'After all, I have b e e n

out. In the beginning it had b e e n wonderful — so many

invited. All I n e e d is a disguise and s o m e medical supplies.'

exciting species to hunt and nail to the wall. B u t n o w coun-

M u l c h was impressed. 'That's very g o o d . You're almost

tries w e r e protecting their rare animals, especially the big

as devious as I am.' A r t e m i s t u r n e d b a c k to the v-board. It would take t i m e to firm up his cover. 'You have no idea,' he said.

ones. T h e r e was no flying into India for a tiger shoot any m o r e . And the sub-Saharan nations t o o k it e x t r e m e l y badly if a group of w e l l - a r m e d Extinctionists showed up at o n e of their reserves and began taking p o t shots at elephants. It was getting to the point w h e r e g o v e r n m e n t officials w e r e

T h e night of the E x t i n c t i o n i s t s ' b a n q u e t was upon h i m and

refusing b r i b e s . Refusing bribes.

Kronski's nerves w e r e frazzled. He danced around his chalet

T h e r e was a n o t h e r p r o b l e m with the E x t i n c t i o n i s t s ,

wearing nothing b u t a bath t o w e l , anxiously h u m m i n g his

though K r o n s k i would never admit it aloud. T h e g r o u p

way through the tunes from Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor

had b e c o m e a t o u c h s t o n e for the lunatic fringe. His h e a r t -

Dreamcoat. Kronski often d r e a m e d that he was wearing the

felt hatred for the animal kingdom was attracting b l o o d -

T e c h n i c o l o r coat and it was fashioned from the pelts of all

thirsty crazies w h o c o u l d n o t see past putting a bullet in

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a dumb beast. T h e y could n o t grasp the philosophy of the

/ have sold a creature . . . a person to the Extinctionists.

organization. M a n is king, and animals survive only so long

Being as smart as he was, A r t e m i s was perfectly capable

as they c o n t r i b u t e to the c o m f o r t of their m a s t e r s . An animal w i t h o u t uses is wasting precious air and should be w i p e d out.

of constructing an argument to justify his actions. Her friends will free her. They almost outsmarted me; they can certainly outsmart Kronski. That fairy creature is probably on her

B u t this n e w creature changed everything. E v e r y o n e would want to see her. T h e y would film the entire trial and e x e c u t i o n , leak the tape and then the world would c o m e t o D a m o n Kronski.

way back to wherever she came from right now, with the lemur under her arm. A r t e m i s distracted h i m s e l f from this shaky reasoning by concentrating on K r o n s k i .

One year of donations, thought K r o n s k i . Then I retire to enjoy my wealth.

Something really should be done about that man. A titanium P o w e r b o o k h u m m e d gently on A r t e m i s ' s

Five million. This fairy, or whatever it is, is worth ten times that. A hundred times.

fold-out tray. He w o k e the screen and o p e n e d his personal I n t e r n e t b r o w s e r p r o g r a m that he had w r i t t e n as a school

Kronski jiggled in front of the air-conditioner blast for a m i n u t e then selected a suit from his w a r d r o b e . Purple, he thought. Tonight I shall be emperor. As an afterthought he p l u c k e d a m a t c h i n g tasselled Caspian tiger-skin hat from an upper shelf. When in Fez, he thought brightly.

p r o j e c t . Thanks to a powerful and illegal antenna in the j e t ' s cargo bay he was able to pick up radio, television and Internet signals almost anywhere in the w o r l d . Organizations like the Extinctionists live and die on their reputations, he thought. It would be an amusing exercise to destroy Kronski's reputation using the power of the web. All it would take was some research and the placement

T H E FOWL LEARJET,

10,000

I*IETRES O V E R G I B R A L T A R

of a little video on a few of the Net's m o r e popular networking sites.

Ten-year-old A r t e m i s Fowl tried his b e s t to r e l a x in one of the Learjet's plush leather chairs, but there was a tension

T w e n t y m i n u t e s later, A r t e m i s J u n i o r was putting the

k n o t at the base of his skull.

finishing touches to his p r o j e c t w h e n B u t l e r ducked through

/ need a massage, he thought. Or some herbal tea. A r t e m i s was p e r f e c t l y aware what was causing the tension.

the c o c k p i t door. ' H u n g r y ? ' asked the bodyguard. ' T h e r e ' s s o m e h u m m u s in the fridge and I m a d e yoghurt and honey smoothies.'

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A r t e m i s e m b e d d e d his video p r o j e c t on to the final website. ' N o , thank you,' m u m b l e d A r t e m i s . ' I ' m n o t hungry.' ' T h a t will be the guilt gnawing at your soul,' said B u t l e r candidly, helping h i m s e l f from the fridge. ' L i k e a rat on an old bone.' ' T h a n k you for the simile, Butler, but what's done is done.' ' D i d we have to leave Kronski the weapon?' 'Please, I put r e m o t e destruct charges in my hardware.

Artemis frowned. It was the right thing to do, but it was not on his agenda. Returning to Fez would n o t save his lather. B u t l e r folded his paper plate in half, trapping the debris from his m e a l inside. ' A r t e m i s , I would like to swing the j e t around, and I intend to do that unless you instruct me n o t to. All you need to do is say the word.' A r t e m i s watched his bodyguard r e t u r n to the c o c k p i t , but said nothing.

Do you really think such an advanced race will leave their technology unprotected? I wouldn't be surprised if that gun is melting in Kronski's hands. I had to leave it as a sweetener.'

rrioRocco

T doubt the creature is melting.' 'Stop this, Butler. I made a deal and that's the end of it.' Butler sat opposite him. ' H m m . So you are governed by some sort of code now. H o n o u r among criminals. Interesting. S o , what's that you're cooking up on your c o m p u t e r ? ' Artemis rubbed the tense spot on his n e c k . 'Please, Butler. All of this is for my father. You k n o w it must be done.' ' O n e question,' said Butler, ripping the plastic from a cutlery set. ' W o u l d your father want it to be done this way?' A r t e m i s did n o t answer, just sat and r u b b e d his n e c k . Five minutes later, B u t l e r t o o k pity on the ten-year-old. T thought we might turn the plane around and give those strange creatures a little help. Fez Saiss airport has r e - o p e n e d so we could be b a c k there in a couple of hours.'

The D o m a i n e des H o m m e s was buzzing with limo-loads of Extinctionists coming in from the airport, each one wearing their hatred for animals on their sleeve, or on their heads or feet. Kronski spotted a lady sporting thigh-length i b e x boots. Pyrenean, if he wasn't mistaken. And there was old Jeffrey C o o n t z - M e y e r s with his quagga-backed tweed j a c k e t . And Contessa Irina Kostovich, her pale n e c k p r o t e c t e d from the evening chill by a Honshu-wolf stole. Kronski smiled and g r e e t e d each one w a r m l y and m o s t by n a m e . Every year there w e r e fewer n e w c o m e r s to the ranks, but that would all change after the trial tonight. He skipped along towards the banquet hall. T h e hall itself had b e e n designed by Schiller-Haus in M u n i c h , and was essentially a huge prefabricated kit which

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had arrived in containers and b e e n e r e c t e d by G e r m a n

hack and no obvious flash of light, but the ham was n o w

specialists in less than four w e e k s . Incredible really. It was

steaming and ready to serve.

an impressive structure, m o r e formal in appearance than

Kronski raised the v i o l e t - c o l o u r e d sunglasses that he

the chalets, w h i c h was only proper, as serious business was

wore day and night, to m a k e sure his vision was accurate.

c o n d u c t e d inside. Fair trials and then e x e c u t i o n s . Fair trials, thought K r o n s k i , and giggled. T h e main doors w e r e guarded by two burly M o r o c c a n

' M y goodness,' he said in wonderment. 'This is quite a toy.' He stamped on the steel floor, sending a b o n g r e v e r b e r ating through the chamber.

g e n t l e m e n in evening wear. Kronski had considered crested

' N o tunnelling out this t i m e , ' he announced. ' N o t like

jumpsuits for the guards, but dismissed the idea as t o o B o n d .

the souq. Do you speak English, creature? Do you k n o w

/ am not Doctor No. I am Doctor No-Animals. K r o n s k i b r e e z e d past t h e guards,

down a corridor

c a r p e t e d with sumptuous local rugs and into a doubleheight banquet hall with a triple-glazed glass roof. T h e stars s e e m e d close enough to reach out and capture.

what I am saying to you?' T h e creature rolled h e r eyes. / would answer you, h e r expression said, but there is tape across my mouth. 'And for good reason,' said Kronski, as though the sentence

T h e d e c o r was a tasteful blend of classic and m o d e r n .

had b e e n spoken aloud. ' W e k n o w all about your hypnotism

Tasteful e x c e p t for the gorilla-paw ashtrays dotted on each

tricks. And the invisibility.' He pinched her c h e e k , as one

table and the r o w of elephant-foot champagne c o o l e r s on

would a cute infant. 'Your skin feels almost human. W h a t

stands outside the k i t c h e n doors. Kronski squeezed through

are you? A fairy, is that it?'

the double d o o r s , past a brushed-steel k i t c h e n , to the walk-

A n o t h e r eye r o l l .

in freezer at the rear.

If eye-rolling were a sport, this creature would be a gold-medal

T h e creature sat flanked by t h r e e m o r e guards. She was

winner, thought the doctor. Well, perhaps silver medal. Gold

cuffed to a plastic baby chair b o r r o w e d from the compound's

would surely go to my ex-wife, who's no slacker in the eye-rolling

c r e c h e . H e r features w e r e alert and sullen. H e r weapon lay

department herself.

out of r e a c h on a steel trolley. If looks were bullets, thought K r o n s k i , picking up the tiny weapon and weighing it on his palm, / would be riddled. He pointed the weapon at a frozen ham h o c k hanging on a chain and pulled the tiny trigger. T h e r e was no k i c k -

Kronski addressed the guards. 'Has she m o v e d ? ' he asked. T h e m e n shook their heads. It was a stupid question. I low could she move? 'Very well. G o o d . All proceeds according to my plan.'

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N o w Kronski rolled his own eyes. 'Listen to m e . All proceeds

were picky eaters. S o m e hated animals so m u c h that they

according to my plan. That is so D o c t o r N o . I should go and

were vegetarians, which limited the m e n u somewhat. But

get myself some metal hands. W h a t do you think, gentlemen?'

this year Kronski had managed to poach a c h e f from a vege-

' M e t a l hands?' said the newest guard, u n a c c u s t o m e d to

tarian restaurant in Edinburgh w h o could do things with a

Kronski's rants. T h e o t h e r t w o w e r e well aware that many

courgette that would m a k e the m o s t hardened carnivore

of the d o c t o r ' s questions w e r e r h e t o r i c a l , especially the

weep.

ones about A n d r e w Lloyd W e b b e r o r J a m e s B o n d .

T h e y started with a subtle tomato-and-pepper soup in

Kronski ignored the n e w guy. He placed a finger on

baby t u r t l e shells. T h e n a light parcel of roast vegetables in

pursed lips for a m o m e n t , to c o m m u n i c a t e the i m p o r t a n c e

pastry with a dollop of G r e e k yoghurt, served in a m o n k e y -

of what he was about to say, then t o o k a deep whistling

skull saucer. All very tasty, and by n o w the wine was relaxing

breath through his n o s e .

the guests.

' O K , gentlemen. Everyone listening?This evening couldn't

Kronski's s t o m a c h was so c h u r n e d with nerves that he

be m o r e important. T h e future of the entire organization

could n o t eat a single b i t e , which was m o s t unusual for

depends on it. Everything must be totally perfect. Do n o t

him. He hadn't felt this giddy since his very first banquet

take your eyes off the prisoner and do n o t r e m o v e h e r

in Austin all those years ago.

restraints or gag. No one is to see her until the trial begins.

/ am on the verge of greatness. Soon my name will be mentioned

I paid five million in diamonds for the privilege of a grand

in the same sentence as the Bobby Jo Haggard or Jo Bobby Saggart.

reveal, so no one gets in here but m e . Understood?'

I he great evangelist Extinctionists. Damon Kronski, the man who

This was n o t a rhetorical question, though it t o o k the n e w guy a m o m e n t to realize it. ' Y e s , sir. U n d e r s t o o d , ' he b l u r t e d a fraction after the o t h e r two.

saved the world. Two things would m a k e this banquet the greatest ever held. The entree and the trial.

' I f something does g o w r o n g , then your f i n a l j o b o f the

T h e e n t r e e would delight everyone, m e a t eaters and

evening will be burial duty.' Kronski winked at the n e w

vegetarians alike. T h e vegetarians could n o t eat it, but at

guard. 'And you k n o w what they say, last in first out.'

least they could m a r v e l at the artistry it t o o k to prepare the dish.

T h e atmosphere at the banquet was a little jaded - until the food arrived. T h e thing about Extinctionists was that they

Kronski tapped a small gong beside his place setting and stood to introduce the dish, as was the c u s t o m .

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'Ladies and g e n t l e m e n / he began, 'let me tell you a story

A twittering began among the diners.

of extinction. In July 1 8 8 9 , Professor D. S. Jordan visited

No.

Twin Lakes in Colorado and published his discoveries in the

Surely not.

1 8 9 1 Bulletin of the United States Fish Commission. He found

Impossible.

what he declared to be a n e w species, the "yellowfin cutthroat".

' W h a t if a frozen chunk of lake was trapped by a landslide

In his r e p o r t Jordan described the fish as silvery olive with a

deep in an uncharted crevasse and kept solid by near-zero

broad lemon-yellow shade along the sides, lower fins bright

currents.'

golden yellow in life and a deep red dash on each side of the

Then that would mean . . .

throat, hence the "cutthroat". Until about 1 9 0 3 , yellowfin

Inside that chunk . . .

cutthroats survived in Twin Lakes. T h e yellowfin died out

' W h a t if that chunk surfaced a m e r e six weeks ago on

soon after rainbow trout were introduced to Twin Lakes.

(he land o f m y g o o d friend T o m m y Kirkenhazard. O n e o f

O t h e r trout interbred with the rainbows, but the yellowfins

our own faithful m e m b e r s . '

quickly disappeared and are now completely extinct.' N o b o d y shed a tear. In fact there was a smattering of applause for the E w o r d . Kronski raised a hand. ' N o , no. This is n o t a cause for

T o m m y stood to take a bow, waving his T e x a s - g r e y - w o l f stetson. T h o u g h his t e e t h w e r e smiling, his eyes w e r e shooting daggers at Kronski. It was obvious to the entire r o o m that there was bad b l o o d b e t w e e n the two.

joy. It is said that the yellowfin was a very tasty fish, with

' T h e n it would be possible, outrageously expensive and

a particulary sweet flavour. W h a t a pity we shall never taste

difficult but possible, to transport that chunk of ice h e r e .

it.' He paused dramatically. ' O r shall we . . .'

A chunk that contains a sizeable shoal of yellowfin cutthroat

At the rear of the r o o m , a large false wall slid aside to

trout.' Kronski d r e w breath to allow this information to

reveal a red velvet curtain. W i t h great c e r e m o n y , Kronski

sink in. ' T h e n w e , dear friends, could be the first people

pulled a r e m o t e c o n t r o l from his j a c k e t and zapped the

to eat yellowfin in a hundred years.'

curtain, which drew b a c k with a s m o o t h swish. Behind it was an e n o r m o u s trolley bearing what appeared to be a miniature glacier. Silver and steaming. T h e guests sat forward, intrigued. ' W h a t if there was a flash freeze over a hundred years ago in Twin Lakes.'

This p r o s p e c t even had a few of the vegetarians salivating. ' W a t c h , Extinctionists. W a t c h and be amazed.' Kronski clicked his fingers and a dozen kitchen staff w h e e l e d the p o n d e r o u s trolley into the c e n t r e o f the banqueting area, w h e r e it rested on a steel g r i l l e . T h e workers

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then stripped off their uniforms to reveal m o n k e y costumes underneath. Have I gone over the top with the monkey rigs? Kronski w o n d e r e d . Is it just too Broadway? B u t a quick survey of his guests assured him that they r e m a i n e d enthralled. T h e kitchen staff were actually trained circus acrobats from one of the Cirque du Soleil knock-offs touring north Africa. T h e y were only t o o glad to take a few days out from their

F o r the vegetarians there was a Champagne m u s h r o o m risotto, though Kronski did n o t anticipate many takers. T h e non-meat eaters would a c c e p t the fish just to stab it. T h e m e a l was a huge success and the level of delighted chatter rose to fill the hall. Kronski managed to eat half a fillet, in spite of his n e r v e s . Delicious. Exquisite. They think that was the highlight, he thought. They ain't seen nothing yet.

schedule to put on this private show for the Extinctionists. T h e y s w a r m e d up the huge i c e - b l o c k , anchoring t h e m -

After coffee, w h e n the Extinctionists w e r e loosening their

selves on with r o p e s , crampons or grappling h o o k s , and

c u m m e r b u n d s or t u r n i n g fat cigars for an even b u r n ,

began demolishing it with chainsaws, flaming swords and

Kronski instructed his staff to set up the c o u r t r o o m .

flamethrowers, all produced seemingly from n o w h e r e . It was a spectacular indulgence. Ice flew, showering the guests, and the buzz of m a c h i n e r y was deafening.

T h e y r e s p o n d e d w i t h the speed and e x p e r t i s e of a Formula O n e p i t - t e a m , as well they should after three months of being whipped into shape. Literally. T h e w o r k e r s

Q u i c k l y the shoal of yellowfin p o k e d through the blue

swarmed across the grid w h e r e the m e l t e d ice sloshed b e l o w

m u r k of i c e . T h e y hung wide-eyed and frozen in mid-turn,

like a disturbed swimming p o o l , a few stray yellowfins

their bodies caught by the flash freeze.

lloating on the surface. T h e y covered this section of floor

What a way to go, thought K r o n s k i . With absolutely no inkling. Wonderful.

and e x p o s e d a second pit, this one lined with steel and covered with s c o r c h marks.

T h e p e r f o r m e r s began carving the fish in b l o c k s from

Two podiums and a d o c k w e r e w h e e l e d into the c e n t r e

the i c e , and each o n e was passed down to one of a dozen

of the hall, taking the place of the ice-trolley. T h e podiums

line c o o k s w h o had appeared from the side d o o r s , wheeling

had c o m p u t e r s on their swivel tops, and the w o o d e n d o c k

gas b u r n e r s . Each individual b l o c k was slid into a heated

was occupied by a cage. T h e cage's resident was masked by

colander to steam off e x c e s s i c e , then the fish w e r e e x p e r t l y

a curtain of leopard skin.

filleted and fried in olive oil with a selection of chunkycut vegetables and a crushed clove of garlic.

T h e diners' chatter ceased as they held their breath for the big reveal. This was the m o m e n t everyone was waiting

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for, these millionaires and billionaires paying through the

its cage into the pit, passing the laser beam that activates the

nose for a few m o m e n t s of ultimate power: holding the

gas-powered flame j e t s . Voila: instant cremation.

fate of an entire species in their hands. Showing the rest of the planet w h o was boss. T h e guests did n o t n o t i c e the

' A l l o w me to d e m o n s t r a t e . Indulge m e , it's a n e w pit. I've b e e n testing it all week.'

dozen or so sharpshooters placed discreetly on the upper

He nodded at o n e of the staff, w h o yanked up a section

t e r r a c e in case the creature on trial dispayed any n e w

of the grid with a steel h o o k . Kronski then picked a m e l o n

magical powers. T h e r e was little chance of a subterranean

from a fruit platter and tossed it into the pit. T h e r e was a

rescue as the entire hall was built on a foundation of steel

beep, followed by an eruption of blue-white flame gouts

rods and c o n c r e t e .

from nozzles ranged around the pit walls. T h e m e l o n was

Kronski milked the m o m e n t , rising slowly from his seat, sauntering across to the prosecutor's podium. He steepled his fingers, allowing the tension to build, then began his presentation.

burned to black floating crisps. T h e display d r e w an impressed round of applause, but not everyone appreciated Kronski's grandstanding. Jeffrey C o o n t z - M e y e r s cupped b o t h hands r o u n d his

' E v e r y year we put a rare animal on trial.'

mouth. ' C o m e on, D a m o n . W h a t have w e got tonight? N o t

T h e r e w e r e a few h o o t s from the a u d i e n c e , w h i c h

another monkey. Every year it's monkeys.'

Kronski waved away good-naturedly.

Generally interruptions would irritate K r o n s k i , but n o t

'A real trial w h e r e the host prosecutes and one of you

tonight. On this night all h e c t o r i n g , however witty, would

lucky people gets to defend. T h e idea is simple. If you can

be swept from people's m e m o r i e s the second that curtain

convince a j u r y of your unprejudiced p e e r s . . .'

was drawn aside.

M o r e hooting.

' N o , Jeffrey, n o t another monkey. W h a t if . . .'

. . that the creature in this cage contributes positively

Jeffrey C o o n t z - M e y e r s groaned vocally. 'Please, no m o r e

to human existence on this planet, then we will free the

what ifs. We had half a dozen with the fish. Show us the

creature. This, believe it or not, did happen o n c e in 1 9 8 3 .

blasted creature.'

A little before my t i m e , but I am assured it actually happened.

Kronski b o w e d . 'As you wish.'

If the defence counsel's peers are not convinced of the animal's

He t h u m b e d a b u t t o n on his r e m o t e c o n t r o l and a large-

usefulness, then I press this button.' And here Kronski's

view screen descended from the rafters, covering the b a c k

bulbous fingers twiddled playfully with an oversized red

wall. A n o t h e r b u t t o n pushed and the curtain concealing the

button on his r e m o t e control. 'And the animal drops from

caged creature swished smoothly to one side.

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Holly was revealed, cuffed to the baby chair, h e r eyes

Good performance, Tommy, thought Kronski. It's almost as if we hadn't arrange this little confrontation to give me a bit more

darting and furious. At first the main reaction was puzzlement.

credibility Kirkenhazard stood as close to Holly as he dared, then

Was it a little girl?

r e a c h e d in slowly to tweak h e r ear.

It's just a child. Has Kronski gone mad? I knew he sang to himself but this? T h e n the E x t i n c t i o n i s t s ' eyes w e r e drawn to the screen, which was displaying a feed from a c a m e r a clamped to the

' M y saints, it's no fake. This is the real deal.' He stood b a c k and the truth of what was happening filled his face with joy. ' W e g o t ourselves a fairy.' Kirkenhazard

cage.

rushed

across

to

Kronski's

podium,

pumping his hand, clapping his b a c k .

Oh, my Lord. Her ears. Look at her ears.

And so my biggest critic is converted. The rest will follow like

She's not human.

sheep. Useful animals, sheep.

What is that? What is it? T o m m y Kirkenhazard stood. T h i s b e t t e r n o t b e a h o a x ,

Kronski silently congratulated himself. T will p r o s e c u t e the fairy, as is the tradition,' Kronski

D a m o n . O r w e ' l l string you up.' T w o points,' said Kronski softly. ' F i r s t , this is no h o a x . I have unearthed an undiscovered species - as a m a t t e r of

told the c r o w d . ' B u t w h o will defend? W h i c h unlucky m e m b e r will draw the black ball? W h o will i t b e ? '

fact, I believe it to be a fairy. S e c o n d , if this w e r e a h o a x ,

Kronski nodded at the maitre d'.

you would n o t be stringing anyone up, Kirkenhazard. My

' B r i n g the bag.'

m e n would cut you down before you could wave that ridicu-

Like many ancient organizations, the E x t i n c t i o n i s t s w e r e b o u n d by tradition, and o n e of these traditions was that

lous hat of yours and shout yee-haw! S o m e t i m e s it was g o o d to send a shiver down people's spines. R e m i n d t h e m w h e r e the p o w e r was. ' O f course, your scepticism is to be expected, w e l c o m e d in fact. To put your minds at rest, I will need a volunteer from the audience. H o w about you,Tommy? How's that back-

T o m m y Kirkenhazard gulped down half a glass of whiskey to b o l s t e r his n e r v e s , then m a d e his way to the cage.

/WW

o f the assembly and, i f n o m e m b e r w e r e willing, o n e would be c h o s e n by lottery. A bag of w h i t e balls, with o n e b l a c k . T h e spherical equivalent o f the s h o r t straw. ' N o n e e d for the bag,' said a voice. 'I will defend the creature.'

b o n e o f yours?'

/WW

the creature on trial could be defended by any m e m b e r

/WW

/WW

Heads t u r n e d to l o c a t e t h e speaker. It was a s l e n d e r young m a n w i t h a g o a t e e and p i e r c i n g b l u e eyes. He was

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w e a r i n g t i n t e d glasses and a lightweight linen suit. K r o n s k i had n o t i c e d h i m earlier, b u t c o u l d n o t put a

to the ideals of E x t i n c t i o n i s m . F o r years I have followed your career, since I was a boy in Dublin, in fact. Lately, however, I feel that the organization has lost its way, and I

n a m e t o the face, w h i c h disturbed h i m . 'And you are?' he asked, while swivelling his laptop so that the built-in c a m e r a was aimed at this stranger. T h e young m a n smiled. ' W h y d o n ' t we give your identification software a m o m e n t to whisper the answer to you.' Kronski t h u m b e d enter, the c o m p u t e r captured an image and five seconds later plucked m e m b e r s h i p details from the

am n o t the only one with this notion.' Kronski ground his t e e t h . So that was it. A naked challenge to his leadership. ' B e careful what you say, Pasteur.You tread on dangerous ground.' Pasteur glanced at the floor b e l o w him, w h e r e i c e w a t e r still sloshed in the pit beneath. 'You m e a n I could sleep

Extinctionists' file. Malachy Pasteur. Young French-Irish heir to an abattoir empire. Made a sizeable donation to the Extinctionists' coffers. His first conference. Like all the attendees, Pasteur was thoroughly vetted before his invitation was issued. A valuable addition to the ranks.

with the fishes. You would kill m e , D o c t o r ? A m e r e boy. I d o n ' t think that would b o l s t e r your credibility m u c h . ' He's right, fumed Kronski. / cant kill him; I must win this trial. T h e d o c t o r f o r c e d his m o u t h to smile. T d o n ' t kill

Kronski was all c h a r m . ' M a s t e r Pasteur, we are delighted to w e l c o m e you to M o r o c c o . B u t , tell m e , why would you wish to defend this

humans] he said. ' J

u s

t animals. Like the animal in this cage.'

Kronski's many supporters applauded, but that still left many silent.

creature? H e r fate is almost certainly sealed.' T h e young m a n walked briskly to the podium. 'I enjoy

/ was wrong to come here, K r o n s k i realized. It is too remote. Nowhere for private jets to land. Next year I will find some-

a challenge. It is a m e n t a l e x e r c i s e . ' 'Defending vermin is an e x e r c i s e ? '

where in Europe. I will announce the move as soon as I crush

'Especially vermin,' r e t o r t e d Pasteur, lifting the lid on his

this whelp.

laptop. 'It is easy to defend a servile, useful animal like the

' A l l o w m e t o explain the rules,' continued K r o n s k i ,

c o m m o n cow. B u t this? This will be a hard-fought battle.'

thinking, Explaining the rules puts me in charge, giving me the

'A pity to be crushed in battle so young,' said K r o n s k i ,

upper hand, psychologically speaking. ' N o need,' said Pasteur brusquely. 'I have read several

his l o w e r lip hanging with m o c k sympathy. Pasteur d r u m m e d his fingers on the podium. 'I have

transcripts. T h e p r o s e c u t o r puts his case, the defender puts

always liked your style, D o c t o r K r o n s k i . Your c o m m i t m e n t

his case. A few minutes of lively debate, then each table

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votes. Simple. Can w e please p r o c e e d , D o c t o r ? N o o n e h e r e appreciates their t i m e being w a s t e d /

We? We? Pasteur was swinging the Extinctionists his way without them even knowing it.

Clever, young man. Tutting yourself on the same side as the

Kronski s u m m o n e d every last drop of charisma from

jury. No matter. I know these people and they will never acquit a

inside himself, flashing b a c k to his youth, to those long

beast, no matter how pretty she is.

s u m m e r days spent watching his evangelist daddy whip up

'Very well. We shall p r o c e e d / He selected a document on his desktop. His opening statement. Kronski knew it by heart, but it was comforting to have the words easily accessible.

the crowds inside a canvas t e n t . He raised his arms high, each finger b e n t b a c k until the tendons strained.

' P e o p l e say that we Extinctionists hate animals/ began

'This is n o t what we are about, people,' he thundered.

Kronski. ' B u t this is n o t the case. We do n o t hate p o o r

' W e did n o t travel all this way for s o m e petty verbal spar-

dumb animals, rather we love humans. We love humans and

ring. This is what the Extinctionists are about.' Kronski

will do whatever it takes to ensure that w e , as a r a c e , survive

pointed a rigid finger at Holly. 'Ridding our planet of crea-

for as long as possible. This planet has limited r e s o u r c e s

tures like this.'

and I, for o n e , say we should hoard t h e m for ourselves.

K r o n s k i shot a sideways glance at Pasteur, w h o was

W h y should humans starve w h e n dumb animals g r o w fat?

leaning, chin on hands, a b e m u s e d l o o k on his face. Standard

W h y should humans freeze w h e n beasts lie toasty w a r m in

opposition behaviour.

their coats of fur?' Malachy Pasteur m a d e a noise s o m e w h e r e b e t w e e n a cough and a c h u c k l e . 'Really, D o c t o r K r o n s k i , I have read several variations on this speech. Every year, it s e e m s , you t r o t out the same simplistic arguments. Can we please focus on the creature before us tonight?'

' W e have a n e w species h e r e , friends. A dangerous species. It can m a k e itself invisible, it can hypnotize through speech. It was armed.' And, to m u c h oohing from the c r o w d , Kronski drew forth Holly's N e u t r i n o handgun from his p o c k e t . ' D o any of us wish to face a future w h e r e this could be

A tittering ripple spread among the banquet guests, and

pointed in o u r faces? Do we? T h e answer, I think, is clearly

Kronski had to struggle to contain his temper. It s e e m e d

no. Now, I ' m n o t going to p r e t e n d that this is the last one

he had a battle on his hands. Very well, then.

of its kind. I feel certain that t h e r e are thousands of these

' M o s t amusing, boy. I was going to take it easy on you, but n o w the gloves are off/ ' W e are delighted t o hear i t /

fairies, or aliens, or whatever, all around us. But does that m e a n we should grovel and release this little creature? I say no. I say we send a message. E x e c u t e o n e and the rest

A/WA

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will k n o w w e m e a n business. T h e g o v e r n m e n t s o f the world

We kill when it benefits us. If an animal is using the planet's

despise us now, but t o m o r r o w they will c o m e banging down

resources and n o t directly contributing to our health, safety

our d o o r for guidance.' T i m e for the big finish. ' W e are

and c o m f o r t , we wipe it out. Simple as that. This was an

Extinctionists, and our t i m e is n o w ! '

ideal w o r t h fighting for. W o r t h killing for. But this . . .'

It was a g o o d speech and drew wave after wave of

Artemis pointed at the pit b e l o w him and Holly in her cage.

applause, which Pasteur rode out with the same b e m u s e d

'This is a circus. This is an insult to the m e m o r y of our ances-

expression.

tors, w h o gave their time and gold to the Extinctionists'

Kronski accepted the applause with a b o x e r ' s rolling of the shoulders, then nodded towards the opposite podium.

cause.' A r t e m i s w o r k e d hard on his eye c o n t a c t , c o n n e c t i n g

' T h e floor is yours, boy.'

with as many people as possible in the audience. Lingering

Pasteur straightened and cleared his throat . . .

for a m o m e n t with everyone. ' W e have an opportunity to learn from this creature. We

. . . A r t e m i s straightened and cleared his throat. T h e fake

owe it to our predecessors to find out if she can contribute

beard glued to his chin itched like crazy, but he resisted

to our coffers. If this is in reality a fairy, then w h o knows

the impulse to scratch it. In a fair arena, he would destroy

what magic it possesses. M a g i c that could be yours. If we

Kronski's arguments in about five seconds, but this was n o t

kill this fairy, we will never k n o w what unimaginable wealth

a fair arena, or even a sane o n e . T h e s e people w e r e blood-

dies with it.'

thirsty, jaded billionaires, using their m o n e y to buy illicit

A r t e m i s b o w e d . He had m a d e his point. It would n o t

e x c i t e m e n t . M u r d e r was just another service that could be

be enough to sway the bloodthirsty Extinctionists, he knew,

purchased. He n e e d e d to handle this c r o w d carefully. Push

but it might be enough to m a k e Kronski feel a little less

the right buttons. First of all he had to establish h i m s e l f as

cocky.

one o f t h e m . ' W h e n I was young, and the family wintered in South

T h e d o c t o r was waving his hands before the e c h o of Artemis's voice faded.

Africa, my grandfather would tell me stories of a time when

' H o w many times must we listen to this a r g u m e n t ? ' he

people had the right attitude towards animals. We kill 'em

w o n d e r e d . ' M a s t e r Pasteur accuses m e o f repeating m y s e l f

when it suits us, he said to m e . When it serves our purposes. This

while he repeats the tired argument of every defence counsel

is what the Extinctionists used to be about. A species was

we have ever listened to.' Kronski tapped his lips in horror.

not protected unless we humans benefited from its survival.

' O o h , let us n o t kill the creature for it is potentially the

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249

248

from its tip and inserted it into the cage l o c k , working it

k n e w the c o m b i n a t i o n to the safe and paid the wages on

through the cogs. As soon as he felt the hair harden in his

time.

fingers, he turned the makeshift key and the d o o r sprang open. 'Thank you, Mulch,' he whispered, then went to work on

T h e sharpshooters on the u p p e r t e r r a c e sent a few warning shots over the crowd's head, which caused u t t e r pandemonium.

Holly's centrally locked cuffs. T h e third hair would not even

' L o c k the building down,' said Kronski into the walkie-

be needed. In seconds Holly was free and rubbing her wrists.

talkie. 'I n e e d t i m e to gather my funds. Ten thousand dollars

' O r p h a n a g e ? ' said A r t e m i s . 'You d o n ' t think that was overdoing i t ? ' ' B o o hoo,' said Holly briskly. ' L e t ' s j u s t get b a c k to the shuttle.'

in cash for every m a n w h o stands by m e . ' T h e r e was no n e e d for further incentive. Ten thousand dollars was t w o years' wages to these m e n . D o o r s and shutters w e r e s l a m m e d down and m a n n e d

It was n o t to be that straightforward.

by burly guards, each o n e brandishing a rifle or a c u s t o m -

Kronski was being herded into a c o r n e r by a group of

made M o r o c c a n n i m c h a sword with rhino grip that Kronski

E x t i n c t i o n i s t s . T h e y harangued and even prodded and poked the doctor, ignoring his arguments, while overhead the video message played again and again.

had had m a d e for the security t e a m . T h e spooked Extinctionists bolted towards bathrooms or alcoves, anywhere that might have a window. T h e y frantically

Oops, thought A r t e m i s , closing his phone.

punched numbers into their phones, screaming for help from

Inevitably perhaps, K r o n s k i c r a c k e d . He b a t t e d his

anyone, anywhere.

t o r m e n t o r s aside like bowling pins, clearing a circle of

A few w e r e m o r e resourceful. T o m m y Kirkenhazard

breathing space for himself, then, panting, he pulled a walkie-

pulled out a c e r a m i c handgun he had smuggled in under his

talkie from its clip on his b e l t .

hat and t o o k a few potshots at the upper t e r r a c e from behind

' S e c u r e the area,' he w h e e z e d into the device. ' U s e all necessary force.' Even though the D o m a i n e des H o m m e s s e c u r i t y guards w e r e t e c h n i c a l l y w o r k i n g for t h e E x t i n c t i o n i s t s , t h e i r loyalties lay with the m a n w h o paid t h e i r salaries. T h a t m a n was D a m o n K r o n s k i . He m i g h t dress like a d e m e n t e d p e a c o c k and have the m a n n e r s of a d e s e r t dog, b u t he

a heavy teak bar. He was answered by a volley from above, with shattered bottles, m i r r o r s and glasses sending slivers Hying like arrowheads. W i t h a straight-fingered j a b to the solar p l e x u s , a tall Asian m a n quickly disarmed a d o o r guard. 'This way!' he called, flinging the fire d o o r wide. T h e portal was quickly j a m m e d with E x t i n c t i o n i s t t o r s o s .

if*

251

250

A r t e m i s and Holly sheltered behind the cage, watching for a way o u t .

'You c a m e for m e , ' whispered Holly. ' T h a n k you.' T h e n the hand was g o n e .

' C a n you shield?' Holly twisted h e r chin and o n e a r m rippled out of sight.

All m a g i c has a p r i c e . W h e n fairies shield, they sacrifice

' I ' m l o w on j u i c e . I have j u s t about enough for a m i n u t e

fine m o t o r skills and clear thought. It is infinitely m o r e

or two. I've b e e n saving it.'

difficult to do a jigsaw w h e n your body is vibrating faster

A r t e m i s s c o w l e d . 'You are always low on j u i c e . D i d n ' t N u m b e r O n e fill you up with his signature m a g i c ? '

than a h u m m i n g b i r d ' s wings, even if your brain could stop rattling for long enough to focus on the puzzle.

' M a y b e if your bodyguard hadn't plugged me with a dart

In the L E P Academy, Holly had picked up a tip from an

— t w i c e . Maybe if I hadn't had to heal you at Rathdown

Atlantean gym c o a c h . It really helped to b e a t the shield-

Park. And maybe if I hadn't b e e n shielding in the souq,

shakes if you sucked your l o w e r abdominals in and up,

trying to find your monkey.'

strengthening your c o r e . It gave you something to focus on

'Lemur,' said A r t e m i s . ' A t least we saved Jayjay.'

and held your t o r s o a little tighter.

Holly ducked as a hail of glass shot over h e r head. ' M y

Holly practised the e x e r c i s e as she crossed the banquet

goodness, A r t e m i s . You sound like you actually care about

floor towards the k i t c h e n . W h e n a frantic, butter-knife-

an animal. N i c e b e a r d by the way.'

wielding E x t i n c t i o n i s t missed h e r by a shade, she thought

' T h a n k you. Now, do you think you could shield for long enough to disarm those t w o guards on the kitchen d o o r behind us?'

(hat s o m e t i m e s being invisible was m o r e dangerous than being in plain sight. T h e t w o guards o n t h e d o o r w e r e actually g r o w l i n g

Holly sized the t w o m e n up. B o t h had shotguns and w e r e

a t a n y o n e w h o v e n t u r e d t o o c l o s e . T h e y w e r e big, even

radiating enough m a l e v o l e n c e to ripple the air. 'Shouldn't

l o r h u m a n s , and H o l l y was glad that n o f i n e m o t o r skill

be a p r o b l e m . '

would b e c a l l e d for. T w o q u i c k j a b s i n t o t h e n e r v e c l u s t e r

' G o o d . D o i t quietly. W e d o n ' t want another b o t t l e n e c k . If we do get separated, let's m e e t s o m e w h e r e close. At the souq.' ' O K , ' said Holly, vibrating into invisibility. A second later A r t e m i s felt a hand on his shoulder, and heard a disembodied voice in his ear.

.ibove t h e k n e e should b e p l e n t y t o b r i n g t h e s e guys down. Simple, thought Holly, then, / shouldn't have thought that. Whenever you think that, something goes wrong. O f c o u r s e she was dead right. S o m e o n e started firing on Kronski's guards. Silver darts

253

252

streaked through the air, then punctured skin with a sick-

Holly t u r n e d towards A r t e m i s , but he was lost in a clump of advancing Extinctionists.

ening thunk. Holly k n e w instinctively w h o the s h o o t e r was, then h e r suspicions w e r e confirmed w h e n she spotted a familiar

He must be somewhere in there, she thought, then she was pinned by the m o b , b o r n e aloft and into the k i t c h e n . ' A r t e m i s , ' she called, c o m p l e t e l y forgetting that she was

silhouette a n c h o r e d in the r o o f b e a m s .

still invisible. ' A r t e m i s ! '

Butler! T h e bodyguard was draped in a d e s e r t blanket, but Holly

B u t he was n o w h e r e to be seen. T h e world was a m e l e e

identified him from the shape of his head and also from his

of elbows and torsos. Sweat and screams. Voices w e r e in

unmistakable shooting position: left e l b o w c o c k e d out a

her ears and ragged breath on h e r face, and by the t i m e

little m o r e than m o s t m a r k s m e n preferred.

she had disentangled h e r s e l f from the pack, the banquet

Young Artemis sent him back to clear a path for us, she realized. Or maybe Butler made the decision himseff.

hall was virtually d e s e r t e d . A few stragglers, but no A r t e m i s . The souq, she thought. / will find him in the souq.

W h i c h e v e r it was, B u t l e r was n o t helping as m u c h as he h o p e d . W i t h the guards dropping at the fire e x i t , the

A r t e m i s tensed h i m s e l f to run. As soon as Holly t o o k the

Extinctionists w e r e piling over their fallen captors, desperate

guards out of c o m m i s s i o n , he would sprint as fast as he

to be free of this building.

could and pray that he didn't trip and fall. Imagine, to

Caged Extinctionists, thought Holly. I'm sure Artemis appre-

endure all of this only to be defeated by a lack of coordination. B u t l e r would be sure to say / told you so w h e n they

ciates that irony. J u s t as Holly drew b a c k h e r fists, the t w o guards at the kitchen d o o r c l u t c h e d their n e c k s and pitched forward,

m e t in the afterlife. Suddenly the p a n d e m o n i u m level j u m p e d a few n o t c h e s , and the screaming of the Extinctionists r e m i n d e d A r t e m i s

unconscious before they hit the floor. Nice shooting. Two shots in under a second from eighty

of R a t h d o w n Park's panicked animals.

metres out. With darts too, which are about as accurate as wet

Caged Extinctionists, he thought. Oh, the irony.

sponges.

T h e k i t c h e n - d o o r guards fell, clutching their throats.

She was not the only one to notice the unguarded door. A dozen hysterical Extinctionists rushed the portal, screaming

A r t e m i s b e n t low, like a sprinter waiting for the gun, then catapulted h i m s e l f from his hiding place behind the

like rock-band fans.

dock.

We need to exit this building. Now.

/WSA.

Nice work, Captain.

AAAA

AAAA

AAAA

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254

Kronski hit him broadside with his full weight, tumbling t h e m b o t h through the railings into the d o c k . A r t e m i s

the pit was filled with blue-white flame that blasted black s c o r c h marks in the walls.

landed heavily on the baby chair and it collapsed under-

Nothing could have survived.

neath him, o n e of its arms raking along his side.

Kronski b r a c e d h i m s e l f against the d o c k rails, perspira-

' T h i s is all y o u r fault,' squealed K r o n s k i . ' T h i s was supposed to be the best night of my life.' A r t e m i s felt h i m s e l f being s m o t h e r e d . His m o u t h and nose w e r e j a m m e d by sweat-soaked purple material. He intends to kill me, thought A r t e m i s . / have pushed him too far. T h e r e was no t i m e for planning and, even if there were t i m e , this was not one of those situations where a handy mathematical t h e o r e m could be found to get Artemis out of his predicament. T h e r e was only only one thing to do: lash out.

tion dripping from the tip of his nose into the pit, evaporating on the way down. Do I feel bad about what just happened? he asked himself, aware that psychologists r e c o m m e n d e d facing trauma headon in o r d e r to avoid stress in later life. No, he found. / don't. In fact, I feel as though a weight has been If ted from my shoulders. Kronski raised h i m s e l f up with a great creaking and cracking o f knees. Now, where s the other one? he w o n d e r e d . / still have some weight to lose.

So A r t e m i s k i c k e d , punched and gouged. He buried his k n e e in Kronski's ample s t o m a c h and blinded him with his

A r t e m i s saw the flames b l o s s o m around h i m . He saw his

fists.

skin glow blue with their light and heard their raw roar,

All very superficial blows which had little lasting effect,

then he was through, unscathed.

e x c e p t o n e . A r t e m i s ' s right h e e l brushed against Kronski

Impossible.

chest. Kronski didn't even feel it. B u t the heel c o n n e c t e d

Obviously n o t . Obviously, these flames had m o r e bark

briefly with the oversized b u t t o n on the r e m o t e c o n t r o l in the doctor's p o c k e t , releasing the d o c k trapdoor. T h e second his brain registered the loss of b a c k support, A r t e m i s k n e w what had happened.

about t h e m than b i t e . Holograms? T h e pit floor yielded b e n e a t h his w e i g h t with a hiss of p n e u m a t i c s , and A r t e m i s found h i m s e l f in a s u b - c h a m b e r

/ am dead, he realized. Sorry, Mother.

l o o k i n g up at heavy steel d o o r s swinging c l o s e d above

A r t e m i s fell bodily into the pit, breaking the laser beam

him.

with his elbow. T h e r e was a b e e p and half a second later

The view from inside a swing-top bin.

&6