Disclaimer: I do not own Artemis Fowl.

Inside Artemis's head, a fierce battle was raging. It was Artemis and Orion against Otus, the dark figure that had crawled from the darkest depths of Artemis's disease.

Orion flung a chair at Otus, which bounced off him as if it were a rubber ball. "We can't hold out much longer!" He yelled at Artemis, who was backed up into a corner, trying to keep Otus's attention focused on him instead of the screen which allowed Artemis and Orion to jump into Artemis's body. That was Otus's main goal; to get back into the real world and hurt everyone Orion and Artemis loved. They wouldn't let that happen.

"You're right, Orion. You can't hold out much longer." Otus said snidely, stepping out into the open and vanishing back behind his table barricade before the clock that Orion threw hit him. "What can a sick human and a love-sick alter-ego do against me? I am everything that was Artemis Fowl, and infinitely more." Otus came out again and easily side-stepped when Artemis chucked a small table at him.

"We can go on for days, Otus." Artemis said, fighting to stay conscious. The disease was starting to effect him even here. His brain started showing him pictures of Holly, on the ground, with blood everywhere. Then is switched to Butler, lying on the cart in En Fa, the fish restaurant in London when he got shot. Artemis tried to shake these visions away, but he couldn't. they were too powerful.

Orion stepped out too. He could see that Artemis was in no shape to take down this monster, so he knew he would have to do it. "Love-sick alter-ego?" He said, smiling. "Not anymore. I still love Holly, and Artemis does too, but we both know that it can't go far and it won't end well, but we still love her! And I will still fight for her. I will not let a monster like you into the world."

Artemis cracked a grin, though it was extremely painful. Yep, they were definitely like him. Grand-standers to the end. Orion started to circle Otus and Otus just stood there, smiling evilly.

"So, before I turn you into dust, I'd like to know something," Otus said, his eyes following Orion's every move.

"What's that?" Orion spat, wary of his mind-games.

"Why was it you?"

Orion faltered momentarily, then regained his sense of confidence. "I don't know-"

"Oh, of course you do." Otus said, smiling broadly. "Why was it you that came out when Artemis was shocked, that day in the ice? I mean, you served no purpose then, other than a nuisance to that very lovely Captain."

Orion threw a very heavy book at Otus. "Shut up about Holly! In fact, shut up in general."

Otus faked a tremor of fear. "Oooh, scary. Listen lover-boy, the elf isn't going to choose you. just accept it! I'm sure you'll probably find some nice troll to accept you and love you for the figmentation you really are. You're not real, Orion. The only real one of us in this room is me! Because I have more power than you."

Why did I show up that day? Why was I created? He's right. I don't serve much of a purpose. Orion tried to block those thoughts out, but it was hard. Finally he yelled, "You're not! You're the one who isn't real! Artemis is the original one and he's a human. You're just a stupid illusion."

Otus clicked his tongue. "Tut tut, Orion. It's not wise to insult me."

Suddenly, Orion launched himself at Otus, catching him off guard and sending them sprawling across the room. Artemis knew he should try to help Orion, but he couldn't move. His brain was paralyzing his body with the images shown; all of them were ones where he'd caused something to happen. Holly's finger, Holly's kidnapping, Butler dying, twice-

"Twice." Artemis said quietly to himself. "I didn't kill Butler twice. I didn't kill him!" Realization came in a flash. Butler wasn't dead. He was alive, and so was Holly. He couldn't let this thing hurt them. Suddenly, the images stopped and he was able to rise from the floor. Artemis took seven powerful steps, strength returning with every inch, and finally he stood over the two alter-egos, glaring down at Otus with such hate that Otus froze, staring up at him. Orion took this opportunity to punch Otus in the nose and Otus pushed him away, swearing.

"You," He said venomously when Artemis stepped forward. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm here to stop you, Otus, or whatever you are." Artemis said. His mismatched eyes were bright and fiery and his Raven hair crackled with blue sparks. Magic. Artemis felt it coursing through his veins and through his every molecule.
"I'm not going to let Holly or anyone else be hurt or even touched by you." He said, circling Otus. Otus's eyes flashed red with anger. "You are a sick, twisted result of a chemical and magical mixture. You don't exist. Orion does exist, however, because he is a part of me. He loves Holly as much as I do, and neither of us will just stand by and watch you make our loved ones suffer."

Otus smiled, his black eyes turning into slits. "You? What can you do? You're nothing but a human. I am the one who holds the power here, not you."

Artemis shook his head. The blue sparks crackled along his skin. "I do have the power, Otus. I have the power to throw you out of my system and back to the hell where you were created."

Otus smiled. "Well, here I am. I was created in your own brain, Arty. So how are you going to get rid of me now?"

XXXXXXXXX

Several hours after the meeting in the office

Holly was sitting in a chair in her apartment. Since Doctor Argon had asked her to stay away from Artemis or Otus or whoever he might be when he woke up, she'd retreated half-way across Haven to her secluded little apartment. She still kept her call cube with her at all times, but she hadn't much hope that they would need her.

Holly, feeling more depressed than she'd ever felt, headed to the bathroom where she slipped off her jumpsuit, which she'd been wearing for days, and stepped into her shower. As the warm water cascaded around her, her mind wandered, as it was bound to in any case, back to Artemis and his disease.

If I truly didn't give it to him, then why do I feel so dejected? She asked herself as she washed twenty-seven hours' worth of dirt and sweat from her auburn hair. And why did this new alter-ego suddenly emerge? What triggered it?

After she got out and toweled off, slipping into some clean clothes and falling back onto her small bed, she wondered if Artemis was ever going to be completely cured.

"I mean, as far as Argon knows, this new disease is partially Atlantis Complex, right?" She asked thin air. "MPD, Atlantis Complex is mostly found among guilt-ridden fairies, not humans, and yet Artemis was plagues by it for months. Now it's escalated into a worse disease and I can't do anything about it besides make it worse!"

Something seemed to take root in Holly's mind and she couldn't help thinking about all the parts she'd played in Artemis's crazy adventures. She'd saved his father, she'd saved his life, she'd saved Butler. . .

I killed Root, I nearly killed Artemis's mother, I screwed up Butler's healing and turned him into an old man. . .These thoughts came unbidden and soon Holly was reduced to throwing soft things at the wall, her skull nearly splitting open in an effort to show her more of the bad things she'd done.

"This is ridiculous." She said, holding her head in her hands. "I just wanted to live a normal life; be the first female recon Captain ever was nice, sure, but look at all the trouble it caused me! I was nearly killed more times than I can count and I've killed and nearly killed the same. I just wanted a normal life, but now I'm stuck here, waiting. Everything keeps running through my head: Will Artemis live? Will he not? Am I so stupid to think that he actually cares for me?!"

In her frustration and anger, she threw herself down on her bed, sobbing. "I want to help Artemis, I need to help Artemis, but all I do is make it worse! He tried to warn me, but I didn't listen and now I'm making it a lot worse!"

Holly rolled over onto her back and said to the ceiling dejectedly, "What am I supposed to do? I caused all this, giving Artemis my magic in the time-tunnel. I could've stopped it! Ordered it back into me! I could've done-" Then she stopped, looking up at the mirror that was across from her. "Oh no," She said. "It can't be! It's not contagious!"

She ran to her call cube and quickly said, "Argon, doctor." Her eyes were wide with fear and her voice cracked on the syllable of his first name. the call cube checked her phone book in a microsecond and dialed the number in another microsecond.

"Hello, Doctor J. Argon's clinic, how may I help you?" Said the receptionist's voice on the other end. Holly swore and the receptionist, thinking this was a prank call, pushed the cancel call button on her call cube immediately.

Holly swore again, this time because she'd meant for the cube to call Argon's personal number. "Screw it!" She said and overrode the voice-coded program, switching to manual. A small keyboard slid out at her request and she typed in the doctor's number, waiting until the call went through.

"Doctor Argon. Make it quick, I'm very busy."

"Argon, it's Holly." Holly said quickly.

"Holly?" Argon said, frowning. "Why are you calling?"

Holly took a deep breath and said, "I think I'm developing Atlantis Complex."

Sorry peeps to leave you hanging like that but, hey, that's what writers do!

Oh, and thank you Kuronekohimesama and Tawny for being such good and faithful reviewers. Thanks to Arkie, Andromeda and the Ye old story teller for the nice reviews. I'll look forward to more, and so will you. Goodnight, and big books.