Artemis Fowl_ The Arctic Incident - Eoin Colfer [36]
‘What’s Foaly got on the weather? I don’t want to be caught in the middle of a blizzard miles from our destination.’
‘No luck. I can’t get a line. Magma flares must still be up.’
‘D’ Arvit!’ swore Root. ‘Well, I suppose we’ll have to take our chances on foot. Butler, you’re the expert here, you take point. Captain Short, bring up the rear. Feel free to boot any human backside if it lags behind.’
Holly winked at Artemis. ‘No need to tell me twice, sir.’
‘I’ll bet there isn’t,’ grunted Root, with only the barest hint of a smile playing about his lips.
The motley band trudged south-east by moonlight until they reached the railway line. Walking along the sleepers was the one place they could be safe from drifts and suck holes. Progress was slow. A northerly wind snaked through every pore in their clothing, and the cold attacked any exposed skin like a million electric darts.
There was little conversation. The Arctic had that effect on people, even if three of them were wearing coil-heated suits.
Holly broke the silence. Something had been nagging at her for a while. ‘Tell me something, Fowl,’ she said from behind him. ‘Your father. Is he like you?’
Artemis’s step faltered for an instant. ‘That’s a strange question. Why do you ask?’
‘Well, you’re no friend to the People. What if the man we’re trying to rescue is the man who will destroy us?’
There was a long silence, broken only by the chattering of teeth. Holly saw Artemis’s chin drop on to his chest.
‘You have no cause to be alarmed, Captain. My father, though some of his ventures were undoubtedly illegal, was… is… a noble man. The idea of harming another creature would be repugnant to him.’
Holly tugged her boot from twenty centimetres of snow. ‘So, what happened to you?’
Artemis’s breath came over his shoulder in icy sheets. ‘I… I made a mistake.’
Holly squinted at the back of the human’s head. Was this actual sincerity from Artemis Fowl? It was hard to believe. Even more surprising was the fact that she didn’t know how to react. Whether to extend the hand of forgiveness, or the boot of retribution. Eventually, she decided to reserve judgement. For the moment.
They passed into a ravine, worn smooth by the whistling wind. Butler didn’t like it. His soldier’s sense was beating a tattoo on the inside of his skull. He raised a clenched fist.
Root double-timed until he caught up.
‘Trouble?’
Butler squinted into the snow field, searching for footprints. ‘Maybe. Nice spot for a surprise attack.’
‘Maybe. If anyone knew we were coming.’
‘Is that possible? Could someone know?’
Root snorted, breath forming clouds in the air before him. ‘Impossible. The chute is totally isolated, and LEP security is the tightest on the planet.’
And that was when the goblin hit squad soared over the ridge.
Butler grabbed Artemis by the collar, unceremoniously flinging him into a drift. His other hand was already drawing his weapon.
‘Keep your head down, Artemis. Time for me to earn my salary.’
Artemis would have responded testily had his head not been under a metre of snow.
There were four goblins flying in loose formation, dark against the starlit sky. They quickly rose to three hundred metres, making no attempt to conceal their presence. They neither attacked nor fled, simply hovered overhead.
‘Goblins,’ grunted Root, pulling a Far shoot neutrino rifle into his shoulder. ‘Too stupid to live. All they had to do was pick us off.’
Butler picked a spot, spreading his legs for steadiness. ‘Do we wait until we see the whites of their eyes, Commander?’
‘Goblin eyes don’t have whites,’ responded Root. ‘But even so, holster your weapon. Captain Short and I will stun them. No need for anyone to die.’
Butler slid the Sig Sauer into its pouch beneath his arm. It was next to useless at that range anyway. It would be interesting to see how Holly and Root handled themselves in a firefight. After all, Artemis’s life was pretty much in their hands. Not to mention his own.