The trio was met by the comfort of Fowl Manor. Almost like magic, the day’s exhaustion hit the humans at full force, nearly knocking them out right there in the laboratory. They each proceeded to their rooms, ready to rest and shake away the unfortunate circumstances of their arrival in the alternate world.
And so they did. With the exception of Angeline Fowl, the residents of the manor slept like logs, almost without any worries whatsoever. Artemis was comforted by his possession of a book that would reveal to him all he wished to know about the world. Butler seemed at peace knowing his charge was on the road to meeting his goal. Juliet, having shared the fall from a fatal height, was simply too exhausted to resist sleep.
But the morning arrived quickly, and the humans were up and continuing with their routines before the sun has fully risen. Angeline required her servant’s assistance in continuing her comfort. As such, Juliet was given her usual task of making breakfast for the residents of the abode.
The indifferent chef was preparing a tray of the day’s sustenance to deliver to the head of the house when her employer stumbled into the kitchen in a hurry.
Juliet greeted Artemis with a simple, “Good morning Arty!”
“A good morning it shall be, Juliet.” The boy responded bluntly, filling a small bowl with the contents of the breakfast dishes.
Juliet placed Angeline’s tray on a counter and asked, “What do you mean by that? Are you planning something crazy?” She placed her hands on her hips in a mock-scolding style.
The genius pulled a small fork from a drawer beside the stove and chuckled, “I intend on making progress with the other world today. Between the book I’ve been lent and the interrogation later on, I should learn quite a bit about how to begin building my fortune.” He had a smug, sly glint in his eye, which unsettled the chef.
She groaned, “Just what are you planning, Artemis?”
“I won’t be certain until my meeting with Ms. Sparkle. After the questions have been asked, I should be able to devise a flexible course of action. Of course, I doubt if you would want any part of that.” His lips curled into a devious smile as he carried his bowl from the kitchen.
Juliet scoffed, “Aren’t you gonna eat at the table like a civilized psychopath?” She picked up Angeline’s tray again, and started her way out of the kitchen.
Artemis laughed, “I have research to do, Juliet. I’ll be in the lab if you find it necessary to contact me.” He stopped by the elevator door and took a bite out of the scrambled eggs he had scooped into the bowl.
Without replying, Juliet carried the tray right up the stairs to its intended recipient. Upon seeing the contents of the tray, Angeline scoffed, “You call this a meal? Honestly, you would think a chef could actually cook.” She turned her head away from the tray and crossed her arms.
The chef couldn’t help but notice the similarities between Artemis’s mother and a little child. Trying to be kind, she sighed, “Mrs. Fowl, you must eat something. It might not be the best, but it’s better than nothing, right?”
Almost as if she’d just noticed the guest in the room, Angeline cheered, “Oh Juliet, it’s good to see you! How’ve you and your brother been lately?” The target of the question winced in pain from the sudden shift of attitude.
Ever since hearing of Artemis I’s supposed death in the Kola Bay, Angeline had descended into insanity. Depression, schizophrenia, hallucinations, and bi-polarity were just a few of the side-effects her husband’s death brought to her. She was completely incapable of extended rational thought, and her mind shifted very dangerously in its thought processes. She had developed a strong hatred of light, and very often turned hostile when Juliet entered the scene.
This being the case, the trigger of hostility took a small bow and said, “We’re fine, Mrs. Fowl. Enjoy your breakfast.” She turned to leave before her companion’s attitude shifted again.
As she approached the door, Angeline interjected, “How’s my little Arty doing?”
Juliet’s first thought was that the question was a time-bomb waiting to explode…
…
Butler awoke at the sound of his sister’s rapping on the door to Angeline’s chambers. He was wide awake in an instant, certain that it would only be a matter of time before Artemis would require his service in the other world. He wasted no time in getting dressed in his signature suit, taking time to equip his weapons as he did so. Once everything was in order, the bodyguard decided he would fix something to act as a basic form of sustenance.
He hurried down the stairs and entered the kitchen, entirely prepared to begin cooking breakfast for the residents of the manor. He noticed, to his delight, that his sister had beaten him to it. Without a second’s hesitation, he scooped up the contents of each dish onto a plate and sat at the counter in the center of the room, happy that he hadn’t been the unfortunate soul to cook.
Just as he downed the final bits of his food, Juliet stomped into the kitchen, apparently upset by something. She mumbled, “This is insane. How can you put up with that woman?”
Butler downed a glass of orange juice before answering, “I don’t know what you mean. Her condition isn’t that bad, is it?” His sister’s glare told him otherwise.
“She’s horrible! Her attitude changes every minute. One second she’s insulting the cooking, and then she’s all kind and loving!” Juliet angrily piled a plate with the remaining food, taking a seat by her brother.
Butler sighed, “You can’t blame her, can you? The loss of a loved one can have devastating consequences.” He glanced at a clock hanging on the wall, noting the exact time down to the second.
His sister groaned, “Do you think there’s a chance he’s still alive?”
“None at all.” he replied. “It’s a shame that the young master believes there is a chance of rescue.”
“That’s what all this is for, isn’t it? Everything he’s trying to do to get the family fortune back…”
“It’s all for a fruitless expedition into the Arctic to find his father.”
“Sad, isn’t it?”
“Very. But who are we to stop him from having hope.”
“But do you really think he cares? About Mr. Fowl, I mean.”
Butler poured another glass of orange juice and sighed, “Who knows? We can only be certain that he has faith in this other world to get his fortune.” He downed the glass again, a look of worry filling his features.
Juliet took a large bite from a biscuit before asking, “How far do you think he’ll go? We can’t let him hurt the ponies.”
“We’re talking about the same young master, right? I doubt we can stop him, whatever he decides.” The brute dropped his dishes onto the counter and headed toward the door. He groaned, “All we can do is wait and watch.”
“Right. Try not to let him go too crazy while you’re over there.”
“No promises, Juliet.”
…
It was a nice, cool morning in the town of Ponyville. The sun was still below the horizon, leaving a nice shade of pink in the sky. Twilight Sparkle was sound asleep in her library-home, enjoying the dreams of a young magic enthusiast and the idea of meeting people from an entirely new world. She dreamed about what amazing advances could be made with the knowledge the humans could provide. She also dreamed of how nice it would be to open some sort of relationship between the worlds.
Her dreams were cut short by a loud explosion just outside of the tree-based home. In a terrifying panic, the unicorn leapt from the bed and darted outside to find the source of the disturbance. In the darkness of the late-night, early-morning sun, she had trouble finding any disturbance in the vicinity.
Using her magic to illuminate the area better, she found a round metallic object about a yard away from her door. Sleepiness impairing her sense of caution, she reached a hoof out to examine the object. Wrapped around the foreign entity was a bright yellow sheet of paper. Her curiosity caused her to immediately rip the parchment away and read whatever was scrawled across it.
“If you receive this, attach a reply. Be quick, you have five minutes.
Signed, Artemis”
Twilight immediately hurried up the stairs inside to retrieve a small piece of paper and her quill pen, hastily etching a small message into its boundaries. She wrapped the parchment around the object just as she had found it, keeping her received message in her hoof. She stood a decent distance away from the device, waiting for the five minute timer to tick out. After just a minute of waiting idly, a bright flash of golden light blinded her.
Once the light faded and her eyesight returned, she was excited to see that the device had completely disappeared. Her heart began to race at the thought of such advanced technology, and was determined to ask its owner how it worked.
A voice called to her lazily from upstairs, “Keep it down Twi! …trying to sleep…”
She whispered back, “Sorry Spike…” She lightly stepped over to the far bookshelf and began to search the spines of each book. Her eyes were filled with unquenchable thirst of knowledge.
…
Artemis turned toward the elevator as its doors slid open. As they parted, Butler began to stomp toward his charge, a serious look plastered on his face. The boy continued to eat at his eggs while the bodyguard approached. Just as the latter reached the former, a blast of golden light blinded them both. Artemis immediately placed his bowl down and left his chair, heading toward the obvious source of the light.
After several seconds of lasting light, the pair regained their sight. In his right hand Artemis held the device. In his left rested the paper that had previously been wrapped around it. Before Butler could say anything, the genius began to read the scribble on the sheet.
“Delivered without a problem. See you after a while!
Sincerely, Twilight Sparkle”
The brute simply raised an eyebrow and asked, “What is that supposed to mean?”
Artemis chuckled, “I’ve fixed a very critical problem with my device.”
“What problem would that be?” The bodyguard’s voice was filled with genuine curiosity. He noticed several issues with the device, but Artemis had seemed to focus on a single one.
The boy smiled and began, “The device has been sporadic with the locations in which it connects to Equestria. Upon the initial successful test, the rat arrived in the woods outside of Fluttershy’s home. When I first arrived, I ended up inside her house's kitchen. When we travelled together to the other world, we appeared in the town plaza. According to stories, the next entrance was made high in the sky above the plaza.
“To remedy this problem, I’ve programmed a very specific set of graphs and coordinates into the device, pinpointing exactly where I wish it to take us when we return. Based on the message it returned with, my intended recipient did, in fact, find it like I planned.”
Butler listened intently to his charge’s explanation of the solution. He then inquired, “Where did you program the device to enter the world?”
Artemis chuckled, “Just outside of Twilight’s home. If the library sees very little action, then the building proper is the most sensible option.” He took another bite of scrambled eggs and grinned slyly.
“When will we be returning to the other world?”
“Who is this ‘we’ you speak of? Twilight asked to speak with me, and that is who she shall see. You shall remain here to ensure no stray creatures get caught in the crossfire.” Artemis used hand signals to compliment his words, stressing the importance of his going solo.
Butler shook his head and groaned, “I’m afraid I cannot do that, Artemis. I can’t allow you to return alone with all the risk the device allows for.”
Artemis scoffed, “Sorry, old friend. You will not be going across this time. I don’t think brute force will be necessary for me to manipulate the unicorn into telling me what I wish to know. Your presence may intimidate her into keeping a few more secrets than I’m willing to miss out on. I can’t risk that sort of inconvenience.” The boy noticed a slight shift in Butler’s demeanor, but chose to ignore it for the purpose of stressing his point.
The bodyguard sighed, “It seems you can’t be enticed to change your mind. I’ll leave you be, then.” He turned back toward the elevator, ready to leave. “Inform me when you’re ready to leave, and I’ll return to the security room to monitor the lab.”
“Thank you, Butler. I trust you understand my reasoning behind going alone.”
“Of course, Artemis. Some things must be handled mano-a-mano.”
With a slight bow, the brute exited the room through the elevator. Artemis let out a deep sigh, slightly bothered by his use of an angry tone to the one man who attempted to humor his plights. Taking one final bite of food from his bowl, he put his rubber gloves back on and re-equipped both his watch and device. Taking a deep breath, the genius pushed the button and hoped his calculations had been correct.
With a bright flash, the boy left Earth for a fourth time.