Notes on "Artemis Fowl: The Kurokaze Conspiracy"

Written By: NeppyMan

E-mail: neppyman (at) gmail (dot) com. Please reference "Kurokaze" in any e-mails regarding this work, so that my spam filters do not lose your message.

Rated: T (Some sexual references, Mild language, Mild violence).

Spoils: Artemis Fowl, books 1-3.

Pairings: Artemis Fowl / Holly Short, Trouble Kelp / Holly Short (read the story for details).

Required Reading: Artemis Fowl, books 1-3.

Strongly Suggested: Entire Artemis Fowl series, especially book 5. Fan fiction "Artemis Fowl: The Ardagh Chalice", written by S'Eleene Paris (this story is a companion piece). The fanatic may be found on this site; document filters will not allow me to link it directly. My work is written with her full consent and blessing, and we are working on a third part to the series together as well.

Recommended: Phillip K. Dick's novella "We Can Remember It For You Wholesale". (unrelated to story, but important concepts related to the transience of memory)

Plot Synopsis:

After the resolution of the Ardagh Chalice incident, the predicament caused by Captain Holly Short's completion of her Metamorphosis Ritual comes to a head. The Council of the People tasks Section Eight with the suppression of the details, but they are attacked by a mysterious organization known only as Kurokaze. The remaining members of the L.E.P. and Section Eight must get to the bottom of the conspiracy, but time is running out. The most unlikely operatives will take to the field to solve the mystery, but can they do so and complete Section Eight's original mandate in time?

Disclaimer:

All legal rights to Artemis Fowl, and anything associated with it, belong to Eoin Colfer. I make no claim to anything, even the characters that I have created for this work – if he wishes to lay claim to them, he is certainly within his rights to do so. This is fan-written fiction, and as such should not be sold for any reason. It may be redistributed, provided that no changes are made and this introduction is kept intact.

Prologue

Chambers of the Council of the People, Haven City

"She did what?" The fairy was almost shouting, as he leaned forward in his chair and banged his fist on the table.

"Captain Holly Short completed her Metamorphosis Ritual with the human Artemis Fowl," Commander Root stated, with a slight smirk on his face.

"Explain this, Commander," Council member Rufus Smedley replied, his plump face growing flush. He tossed his head angrily, throwing his hair off of his forehead. He was just as stout as Root, and seemed to be having difficulty breathing at the moment.

"As the Council knows," Root answered, with a slight sigh, "the Lower Elements Police Recon division captured the pixie Opal Koboi, who had stolen the Ardagh Chalice, a human artifact. She attempted to blame the theft on the human Artemis Fowl, with whom the Lower Elements Police have had dealings in the past. During -"

"Get on with it, Commander!" Smedley sneered, cutting him off.

"Council Member, please," added a softer, female voice. "You asked the Commander to explain; let him do so."

Smedley said nothing, but merely grunted.

"Thank you, Wing Commander Vinyáya," Root said, brushing a bead of sweat off of his forehead. "As I was saying, during the course of the investigation, Captain Holly Short was entering the third stage of her Metamorphosis. Due to the untimely death of her parents, the Contract that was arranged for her had been canceled, and she had no arranged mate."

He paused, allowing the circumstances to sink in. "When the troll attacked the L.E.P. Headquarters building, Captain Short and Artemis Fowl were in a nearby café and were chased into the ruins of Tir Na Nog. While trapped, it became apparent that if the Ritual were not performed immediately, she would die. She chose to perform the Ritual with Artemis Fowl. At this point, the two of them were captured by Opal Koboi. Upon her return to the L.E.P. Headquarters, she was escorted to Burdeh Memorial Hospital to complete her Metamorphosis. She is currently on a temporary leave of absence from the L.E.P. while she convalesces."

Root stood up a bit straighter as he finished his recital. He looked straight at Smedley, who was even redder than Root's "working" coloring. This did not bode well.

Smedley sank back into his chair, an ugly look on his face. "Commander Root, your Captain Short has been under investigation by your Internal Affairs department no less than three times. Her so-called exploits with the humans have even gone so far as to make her the subject of a television program. I believe they are trying to get that horrid Skylar Peat to portray her." He steepled his fingers and laid them gently on the table. "Commander, this female is a very public figure."

This drew a cutting glance from Vinyáya, but Smedley ignored it and continued. "What the Council is concerned with is quite simple. You are her direct, commanding officer. You clearly knew that her Metamorphosis was approaching. You may or may not have known that she did not have a mate; this is irrelevant. What we want to know is, at any point preceding this operation, did you in any way encourage your officer to take this sort of an extreme measure? Was there anything that you said, officially or not, that might have led her to this?"

So, Root thought, this is what he's after. He wants me to throw Holly to the wolves, and he's trying to make it easy for me. "No, Council Member, I did not."

"Very well, Commander," Smedley replied, a greasy smile on his face. "And do you, as Captain Short's commanding officer, approve of her decision?"

Root took a deep breath. "Yes, Council Member, I do." A few gasps were heard, and Smedley's jaw opened almost as wide as a dwarf's. The heck with this. I'm not going to abandon my officer, and damned be the consequences.

Root jumped into the silence before anyone else could speak. "More than that, Council Member, I support her fully. Despite her failure to follow orders, she remains the single most effective field member in the Recon division. Losing her would have be an absolute tragedy, and losing her in such an ignominious manner would be an absolute disrespect to the service that she has rendered the Lower Elements Police."

Smedley found his voice again. "Commander, do you realize what you're saying?"

Root swallowed. "Yes, Council Member, I do."

Smedley jumped to his feet. "Your precious Captain has spat on the Ritual that keeps the People alive. She broke all standard Contract laws, she performed the Ritual in an unpurified location, she broke the species barrier, and she did all of these things with... with a Mud Man!"

On the other side of the table, Vinyáya inhaled sharply. "Council Member..." she said warningly.

Smedley returned to his chair, taking a deep breath. "My apologies for the outburst," he said, not sounding at all sincere. "But Commander, you must understand the severity of this. With how many breaches of etiquette Captain Short has committed, should the public learn of this, the entire Lower Elements Police would stand firmly on the side of encouraging this sort of behavior. And the Council simply cannot allow this sort of thing to -"

Another Council member coughed softly. "If I may, Council Member Smedley..."

"Yes, of course, Chairman Bavol."

Ciaran Bavol stood, stretching his slight frame. His dark hair and glasses made him look very bookish, an appearance that was quite justified, as he was the head of the Council and had earned his place through diligent research into the lore of the People. He was widely acknowledged as the single greatest expert currently alive, perhaps ever.

"Council Member Smedley has perhaps overstated the severity of Captain Short's actions." Bavol took off his glasses and began to clean them with a cloth he pulled from his back pocket. "But at the same time, we do have a serious situation here. Commander Root, how many of the People would you say know of the circumstances here?"

Root thought for a moment. "Myself, Specialist Foaly, and Major Trouble Kelp, for certain. Captain Short, obviously. Possibly Major Kelp's brother, Lieutenant J.G. Grub Kelp. I doubt anyone else would know about it; we did our best to keep it quiet."

Bavol blinked slowly, putting his cleaning cloth back in his pocket and perching his glasses back on the bridge of his nose. "Unfortunately, Commander, that's not quite what we're dealing with here."

Root swallowed. "How bad is it?"

Bavol returned to his seat, looking over at Wing Commander Vinyáya. "Council Member Vinyáya, this is your department. We are going to need to take steps to ensure that word of this does not reach the general population."

She nodded. "Who talked?"

Bavol sighed. "Grub."

"D'Avrit," Root and Vinyáya said as one.