Artemis Fowl and the Master Experimentation

Chapter 20

"I love you too," she whispered, her eyes starting to close.

"Faylinn, no, stay with me, I can't loose you, not now," begged Artemis, holding her close.

"The Void," she gasped.

"I can't take you through it, you won' t survive it."

"Go."

"Not without you."

Faylinn closed her eyes and went limp in his arms. Artemis scooped her legs and held her, shaking a little, marveling briefly at the wonders of adrenalin. The doors to the elevator pinged open and he bound through them, pushing past the stunned fairy at the front desk and running across the wide lobby. People kept getting in his way ad he was starting to loose patients, but he finally reached the doors, just as the squads of fairies started to arrive on the scene. He shoved through the doors and out into the main square in front of the plaza, wishing briefly he was shorter. 

Fairies stared after him as he shoved through, shouting angrily after him. He ran blindly, not knowing where he was going, not daring to look back. 

He reached the fountain at the center of the square and briefly looked back to see uniforms struggling to get through the crowds. He pushed onwards. When he reached the other side of the square he had a millisecond to make his choice on where to run. If he followed a main pathway he'd be easily caught, but if he went down alleyways he would get lost and never find his way out. He took a quick breath and ran down a wide alley way beside a shop, then turned down a much smaller one.

"We've lost him," growled Foaly, punching buttons on his keyboard.

"What do you mean we've lost him?" demanded Holly, trying to look over Foaly's shoulder.

"I have no camera feed for the alley way he's gone down. It must have been taken out by vandals."

"Which alley way?" said Holly, strapping her blaster to her belt.

"Wish Bone Alley," said Foaly, shaking his head, "any other alley way or road and he would be alright. But now he's heading right into the danger zone."

"Trust Artemis to find the most dangerous way," muttered Holly darkly, "Butler would keel over if he knew that Artemis was entering the Gang Zone. Lucky for Artemis I know the area well, isn't it?"

"Holly, you can't seriously be thinking of going down there! It's a warren of tiny alleys and you know Artemis is more likely to be found by someone dangerous before you get to him!"

"Have you got any better ideas?" she bellowed.

The centaur frowned and shook his head. Holly felt immediately guilty about her outburst, but she didn't have time to patch up Foaly's ego. She strapped on a pair of Dragonfly's and pulled a helmet with full face visor; then went to the door.

"Holly?" Foaly said, making her pause for a second.

"Yes?"

"Please be careful."

"I'll try."

Foaly heard the door close behind him. All he could do now was sit and wait for news.  

Artemis was beginning to falter, trying to adjust Faylinn in his arms. He'd already had to take three different turns down alleys and he'd lost his sense of direction. On the upside he couldn't hear anyone following them. He slowed to a walk, panting heavily. He wished Butler was here, he was strong and Artemis could do with both Butler's physical strength and his emotional strength, too. 

To his left a swear toad started to curse at him loudly. He cursed at it under his breath, causing it to shout louder and use more inventive curses. Another toad an alley way away took up the swearing, then another. Artemis started to pick up his pace again, worried that someone would hear, but it was too late.