I own nothing, not the characters, not the settings, not even the computer I'm typing on. Well, ok, I own the plot - which may go a little odd in places, but bear with me. This came to me in a daydream in the middle of a maths lesson, so it's not foolproof by any means.

Where was I? Oh, right, disclaimer. All the good stuff belongs to Mr Colfer, and any errors in judgement or character are mine entirely.

Btw, this is my first fanfic, so pls, constructive criticism appreciated!

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Central Haven was in chaos. The civilians who had, moments before, been shopping peacefully were now huddling behind anything large enough to conceal them, terrified. Three sprites with lasers were shooting anything in sight, the beam on their illegal neutrino's refined to kill, rather than just incapacitate. There was already a pixie lying on the floor, unmoving. Holly Short sincerely hoped he was just stunned, not dead.

She was hiding behind a sandwich board outside an eatery, unarmed and as helpless as the civilians surrounding her. Today was her first day off in a month, and she had hoped to do some food shopping. Mulch had popped round to her apartment the previous night to discuss a case (he and Doodah Day ran a Private Investigators Service), and as a consequence her kitchen cupboards were now completely devoid of anything except a three year old hunk of cheese, which even Mulch had refused to eat. 'I should probably throw that out' she thought as a hunk of masonry from the clothing store whistled through the air, millimetres from her head.

She ducked, gritting her teeth. If she was on duty, she'd have had these imbeciles locked up before you could say 'Atlantis'. Then again, if she was on duty, she'd have had a gun of her own, and she wouldn't be hiding.

"D'Arvit" she muttered. She may not be particularly cautious, but neither was she suicidal, and those lasers had already punched holes in solid concrete. Her t-shirt and jacket would be no match for them. Much as she hated to admit it, she was out of her depth.

One of the sprites shot a chunk off the corner of the eatery she was kneeling in front of , and she was forced to roll out from behind the sandwich board to avoid being crushed. Immediately Neutrino charges sank into the ground around her, but luckily the sprites were bad shots, and she was able to get to her feet and sprint for the entrance of the clothes shop. The inhabitants opened the door to allow her access, slamming it shut after she made it inside. Neutrino bursts assailed it, but it held. Barely.

"Reinforced it after that incident with the B'Wa Kell. Should hold a couple more rounds." proclaimed the shop owner. Nobody else cared why it was holding, just as long as it was. Holly cared least of all - she had bigger problems, like the fact that one of the shots had clipped her leg. Blood soaked through the material of her trousers, through her fingers as she shot healing sparks into the wound, and dripped onto the floor. It had been a while since she'd completed the Ritual, and the few sparks she could produce were barely enough to dull the pain. The room spun as she hobbled to the nearest wall and propped herself against it.

"D'Arvit." she swore again, sliding to the floor.

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Commander Trouble Kelp was slouching at his desk, buried in paperwork, when the call came through that three sprites were creating havoc in the city centre. He sat bolt upright, alert at once. One of the techies sent a live feed to his office from a surveillance camera anchored to the outside of the main Haven Bank. There were civilians crouched behind - and inside - anything that could provide cover. His experienced eyes roamed the scene, taking everything in as quickly as possible. Something, or rather someone, in the top left hand corner caught his eye.

"Can you enlarge section C4?" he asked the technician. The screen contracted and the section in question filled the screen. Trouble swore loudly and thumped the intercom button on his desk. His voice thundered throughout all of Police Plaza.

"I want every officer available to get down to the city centre now! There are sprites shooting up the place!"

He grabbed the biggest gun he could find in his office, then joined the herd of officers heading for the city centre. Holly was in danger.

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It was with great relief that the civilians in the city centre greeted their armed saviours. Within seconds, the three sprites were unconscious, tagged and on their way to Police Plaza, and all officers were taking statements or aiding the wounded. All except one. Commander Kelp was staring round for his missing officer. The spot where Holly had been was covered with a large pile of rubble, but his helmet scan said that there was no one under it, living or otherwise. He sighed in relief when he spotted the inhabitants of the clothes shop emerging warily. She must be in there.

She was slumped against a wall, pale but breathing. He hurried to her side, elbowed an unhelpful elf out of his way and saw the big hole in her leg. He laid his hand over hers and breathed 'heal'. Blue sparks erupted from his fingertips and the wound disappeared. Holly smiled weakly at him.

"Thanks."

He unsealed his helmet and rubbed the tips of his ears. This job was so stressful. He helped Holly to her feet. She swayed a little, but stood on her own.

"Are you ok?"

She nodded. "I will be. Thank you, Commander."

He put a hand on her shoulder, prompting two teenage girls to point and titter. He shot them a look and they scurried out of the store.

"You go topside tonight, Captain, and complete the Ritual. Take tomorrow off, we'll see you after the weekend. Got it?"

Holly frowned. "Won't you need me to help clear this lot up, sir?"

"You're involved Holly, so no. Take the weekend off, relax, and report to me first thing as soon as you get back. Ok? Now, go complete the Ritual."

Trouble put his helmet back on and walked out. Holly watched him go, then straightened and left herself. She gave her statement to a junior officer and returned home to change into the LEP uniform. She'd need it to get clearance to fly, and besides, it made her feel better. This outfit, at least, had a little resistance to laser bursts. She didn't think she'd ever take it off again.