Artemis Fowl: A Call for Help

Chapter 32

Lower Elements, Atlantis Maximum Security Prison
Opal sat in her cell, glaring at the door. Artemis Fowl. The name was on a rampage through her mind. Vengeance. At the same time, she was thinking of possible means of escape. She was interrupted by the clicking of hooves.
"I knew you couldn't resist the temptation of bragging, centaur." Opal spat.
Foaly smiled outside her cell. "Actually, that's not why I'm here."
"Then why are you here?"
"I present to you," Foaly said quite melodramatically, "the specifications of your imprisonment."
"Oh, gee. I'm so excited I could jump... wait, no I couldn't. I'm shackled to a bench."
"Quit with the sarcasm." Foaly said. He held a piece of paper in front of him and read aloud. "Opal Koboi is hereby sentenced to two-hundred years in maximum security prison. Koboi, under no circumstances, is allowed visitors or any unnecessary objects. For safety purposes, a guard will always be instated by her cell." Foaly paused, "It lists all your offenses, but I don't have time to read them all. I would be here for hours."
"Why would they send you to do this? If you're so important, wouldn't you be in Police Plaza saving the world with your gadgets?"
"No. This is just as important. However, I do have to leave now. That little creature you created has to be dealt with, as well. Not to mention your slave. A guard will be here shortly to show you to your new cell. One that is much less enjoyable." With that, Foaly turned and trotted away.
Police Plaza
The creature was in a similar position to Opal. Shackled to a bench. Infuriated. Except for creature was in some sort of lab, not prison. They're probably gonna run tests on me, it thought. Sure enough, two pixies in safety gear approached the creature. "We need you to come with us," one said.
"Well, I obviously can't if you don't remove these repulsive restraints." the creature snapped, its voice a snarl.
"That's what we're here to do. Now if you would please not bite our heads off..." the other worker said.
"I can't guarantee that I won't," the creature said rather cynically. One of the workers visibly shuddered. The creature smiled, having achieved its goal of scaring the innocent worker.
"You had better not. If you do, the rest of your life will take place in prison." The braver of the two stepped forward. He unlocked the shackles with gloved hands. The creature stood up and shook out its limbs. When you have been sitting down for hours, your limbs tend to fall asleep. "Follow me."
The creature did as it was told, attempting to avoid doing anything to land it in any trouble. If it did, there would be no chance to execute the plan. The workers led the creature to a MRI. Oh great, it thought.
The workers instructed the creature to lie down on its back. It did, and then the lab workers fastened straps around the creature's midsection. Here we go. The bed slid into the narrow tube. The creature was immediately claustrophobic, but overcame it and stayed perfectly still. It was only a matter of seconds before the bed slid out. The creature lay still, waiting for something to happen. All the while thinking about the plan.
Interrogation Room 3, Police Plaza
Merval shivered. The cold metal of the chair seeped through his shirt, sending chills up his spine. Fortunately, he was not shackled in any way, nor was he mad. Just scared to death. It didn't help that the commander of the LEP was staring at him from the other side of the table, either. "Your name is Merval, correct?"
"Y-yes, sir."
"Alright. It says here," Root said, looking down at his notes, "that you assisted Opal Koboi in a number of illegal acts. Is that true?"
"Uh... yes, s-sir."
"Okay. Did you participate willingly or were you forced?"
"F-forced, sir."
Root nodded. "Were you with your 'employer' a few days ago, above ground? A few minutes outside of Tara, Ireland, to be exact."
"Yes. I-i was."
"Is it true that you ran out in front of a LEP operation and two officers chased you?"
"Yes, sir. I-it was Miss Koboi's idea. Not mine. No, I-i would never do that."
"Mm-hm. Was Koboi working on anything... suspicious, such as a DNA experiment?"
"Yes, sir. She had a whole lab for some sort of experiment that had to do with DNA, but I don't know exactly what it was for."
"Thank you. That's all for now, but we might have more questions later. You'll be given a room to stay in until this whole mess is resolved. Keep in mind you will be monitored, but you are not a prisoner."
"T-thank you, sir." Two guards came into the room.
"We're here to escort you to you room." one said. Merval stood and followed the guards out of the room. He was thrilled to not be in the process of being thrown in jail. At least, not yet.
As soon as the door closed, it swung back open and Foaly made his entrance into the room. "You're getting better at negotiations, Julius."
"Don't call me Julius!"
"I mean, if you think back to the negotiations with Fowl all those years ago, you've improved drastically."
"Whatever, centaur. Anyways, are we anywhere close to being done with this mess?"
"I believe so. We need to finish the exams on the creature. I don't think Merval's even going to need a trial. He seems innocent, and very helpful. If anything, a few more years need to be added to Opal's sentence."
"Good. We have other things to do."
"That we do."