A/N This is set a little while after "Abhorsen" Umm...I don't own any of the characters EXCEPT: Eloa Va-daath , Mordecai, and Eladoni Tzabaoth. Those two I made up (Though Eloa Va-daath is one of those nine greater demons..) This is my first fic about Lirael, I usually follow Sabriel. So here goes.

Prologue

The fog was heavy on the long cliffs. The occupants of Abhorsen's house knew something was causing it. Sabriel thought it was just another necromancer. But she was wrong.

In the fog a creature stirred. He got to his feet and padded over to the cliff's edge. He looked across the mighty Ratterlin at the house, snugly situated on a small island. The creature was a strange sight. His body was that of a red furred lion, but from his shoulders, sprouted the body of a man. In this way, he resembled a centaur. But his eyes burned with a red glow, and in place of fingernails, he had long, hooked claws. Also his fur crawled with Free Magic, and decay. His name was Eloa Va-daath.

A man walked to Eloa's side. The man wore a bandolier of bells, marking him a necromancer. His short brown hair hung limply on his shoulders. He spoke to Eloa in a deep harsh voice.

"You called master?" Eloa turned to look at him, the necromancer quelled slightly under that gaze.

"Yes, Mordecai. I have a job for you." Eloa's voice was high, and sharp, with slightly nasal tones. "I want you to kill Abhorsen Sabriel."

Chapter 1: Free magic, and fog.

Lirael sat at the dinner table, the royal family with her, dinner had been long cleared away, but they were talking over matters. Sabriel sat at the head, Lirael on her right and Touchstone on her left. Ellimere sat next to Touchstone, and Sam next to Lirael. Next to Sam, sat a tall, old man wearing white robes and with long white hair.

He was Yrael. Formerly known as Mogget. When Sabriel had showed him a huge act of kindness by setting him free, he pledged loyalty to her. And now continued to stay with them.

"Well." Sabriel said. "As the fog doesn't seem to be letting up, I guess we'll be stuck here a few days. Tomorrow though, I think that Lirael, Yrael, and Myself shall go to the long cliffs and figure out what's the source of the fog. For I do think it is unnatural." Lirael nodded. Yrael spoke.

"Milady, I think that perhaps we should wait. I sense that something very powerful lurks just beyond the front of the fog." Sabriel chewed her lip in a thoughtful way. "Hmmm. Yes. Well, I think we could manage all the same. It probably is just a necromancer with a couple mordicants, at the worst. But now it's late, we should all be getting to bed." With a loud scraping of chairs everyone got up and began to head to their respective bedrooms.

Morning came dark and gloomy. Fog was still banked up on either side of the Ratterlin. Sabriel stood staring out through the front door. Lirael came up behind her, startling her sister slightly.

"Well, are we going?" Lirael had dressed in her surcoat, armor, sword belt, and bandolier. Sabriel had done the same.

"Yes." Sabriel said after a moment. "Yes I think we shall. Yrael?" Yrael came soon, then the three set off for the western set of stepping stones. Crossing them proved very difficult, because long tendrils of fog reached out, making it hard to see where the next stone was. But they finally reached the other side. A faint smell of free magic blew on the wind, both Sabriel and Lirael smelled it. Yrael was silent.

They were standing, trying to decide what to do, when suddenly all three of them sensed death, hundreds of dead things rushing towards them. The Abhorsens drew swords and bells, and Yrael seemed to grow and become the rushing tower of white fire.

Then the dead hit. Much worse than a bunch of dead hands, it was a group of many mordicants and Shadow hands. Lirael and Sabriel fought side by side, until the dead separated them. Sabriel fought her way to the center of the group, and there she found the necromancer. Wreathed in glowing red flames, he looked to be a formidable opponent. But Sabriel was confident in her abilities, and began to ring Saraneth in a figure eight, forcing her control on him.

The Necromancer laughed. He then spoke a quick spell of free magic. At first, Sabriel thought it had failed. Then, she tried to draw a breath. But it was as though she was inhaling water. She simply could not breath. Dropping sword and bells she put her hands to her throat and attempted to cast a counter spell. But her oxygen starved mind could not form even the simplest marks. She stumbled forward and fell to her knees. The last thing she saw, was the necromancers laughing, triumphant face, before her world went dark.

Mordecai had thrown his entire army at the Abhorsen and her apprentice. The Yrael creature had been a surprise, but no hindrance. The Abhorsen Sabriel had practically walked right in to Mordecai's hands. She came fighting valiantly to him. He had laughed at her attempt to bind him. She was no real opponent. His orders were to kill her. It didn't matter how. So he cast a strong choking spell on her, one that wound her throat with invisible chains of free magic. He then watched her, gasping for air, fall dead at his feet. He then turned and left.

Lirael began to look for Sabriel. The last of the dead had been finally dealt with. The fog was beginning to roll back at an unnatural pace, soon Lirael could see far around her.

"Sabriel?" She called, wondering if Sabriel was waiting for her at Abhorsen's bridge. Lirael began to look around her. Perhaps Sabriel was sitting, mending her wounds... Then she noticed something laying on the ground, perhaps fifty feet away. She ran to it.

"Sabriel!" She cried, recognizing the limp form of her sister. She shook Sabriel, to no avail. Then, nervously, she felt for a pulse...there was none. "Yrael! Yrael come quick!" She half sobbed.

Sabriel was plunged into death with a disconcerting suddenness. One minute, she was blacking out on the long cliffs, next she was falling into the river.

"I must have asphyxiated or something," She muttered to herself. Suddenly the roar of the first gate got louder than softer. Sabriel sat up, halting her progress down the river, and stared off towards the first gate. The thing that came out was like nothing she had ever seen. It surprised her so that she actually stood without realizing it. Then the thing spoke,

"Well Abhorsen. So we finally meet. I see my servant has succeeded in getting rid of you."