Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Skulduggery Pleasant characters (although I wish I did - they're awesome). They belong to Derek Landy

Chapter 1: Hired

The girl sat patiently on the damp sand, watching the distant waves toss and tumble in the scarce moonlight. She held down the dark hood of her jumper as it attempted to billow in the wind. Rain pelted down on the desolate beach, thoroughly soaking its only occupant. She tried not to shiver, but it was impossible to do so. It was truly unpleasant weather.

Billy-Ray Sanguine trudged grumpily along the beach. His clothes were plastered to his body and his hair was poking up at odd angles. "Why is it always rainin'?" the Texan grumbled. The girl stood up and walked over to Sanguine.

"Mr Sanguine," she said evenly.

He looked at her, mildly surprised.

"Moon?" he inquired.

She looked up at the moon, which was barely visible through the cloud cover, and smiled at the use of her chosen name.

"Yes, I am Moon," she replied confidently.

"Who do you want me to kill?" he asked eagerly, pulling his jacket tighter around him.

She stared at his sunglasses and the empty eye-sockets beyond.

"Valkyrie Cain."

He smiled deviously, gleefully rubbing his hands together.

"Any particular way?"

"In front of Skulduggery Pleasant, as painfully as you can. And then bury the skeleton detective underground, where he can torment himself forever," Moon requested warily.

Sanguine's smiled grew even bigger.

"I'll do it. When do I get paid?"

"Don't rush into situations, Mr Sanguine. We both know how difficult it would be to restrain the skeleton, even with someone as gifted in his trade as yourself."

"Never been called gifted in my trade before. Nice way of putting it..." he said thoughtfully. "Anyway, what do you mean by difficult?"

"You know just as well as I do what I mean. You've dealt with them before. They're a fearsome duo. So I want you to hire others, to get the job done. Whoever you want. You're in charge. I'll pay for it." She handed him a wad of money.

His face was unreadable as he accepted the money. "Anyone?"

She nodded.

"I'll do it."

He stepped back and the sand parted, revealing the ground. Thousands of tiny cracks appeared, then he sank into the earth and was gone.

Moon turned around and walked along the beach, the wind blowing back her hood. She wasn't concerned, since Sanguine was gone. She had long dark hair which was now whipping around her face. She looked to be around sixteen, someone far too young to be dealing with the likes of Billy-Ray Sanguine. However, she wasn't just someone. She looked exactly like Valkyrie Cain, the girl she'd just ordered to kill.

But she wasn't Valkyrie Cain. She was her reflection.