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Chapter 2 The Fight
It was Lirael's first venture without the Disreputable Dog. It was obvious to her. At night, when she had to take a night watch every so often, she had no black, furry, companion, she did not have a close friend, (Lirael was quite shy towards the famous Abhorsen, even if Sabriel was really nice, and Sam's mother. She also was queen, another hard factor to forget.) and, most of all, the Dog had barked her marks, not wrung bells in battle. The bells had an affect on her, too.
Mogget, finding Lirael's awkwardness funny, made sure he was nearby when Lirael started. "Um...Highness Abhorsen, uh, I caught some fish." Lirael said handing over two plump fish to Sabriel one cloudless night aboard a landed Paperwing which had landed on a small island in the Ratterlin. They had left just five minutes before, and it was getting dark. Flying by Paperwing was best, and fastest, but by night, it was nearly impossible.
"Wonderful!" Sabriel said yawning. "I'll cook it since you caught it."
"No! Not at all! I'll see to it immediately, Highness Abhorsen." She said bowing low, scrambling for the cooking pot.
"Don't act like that! Come on, I am your half sister, after all." Sabriel said kindly, helping Goldenhand to her feet, by her golden hand.
Lirael looked up when she was standing upright. "Thanks." She muttered but you'll never be better than the Dog. She thought.
"Lirael," spoke a familiar voice in her head, "Let me go and open yourself to others. Sabriel could be a better friend than I!" the Dog said then barked a swift goodbye and was obviously gone.
Lirael beamed at Sabriel. "Could I call you Sabriel?" she asked hopefully.
"Sure! Could you seriously cook dinner, though?" Sabriel asked as she sat back down, right on top of Mogget. He unsheathed his claws as Sabriel jumped up. He hissed. She scowled.
"You mean little-urg!" she was drowned out by Mogget as he threw a fish at her.
"That was dinner!" Goldenhand exclaimed, as she began a fire in a pit she was making. Mogget just licked his fur innocently.
Lirael stomped back to the waterside where she saw a line of Deadhands on the shore, looking with rotting eyes at the water, questionably. Running back to the others (who where glaring at each other, momentarily) she explained the reason to the still glaring Sabriel why she was arming herself. "Lets go then." Sabriel groaned as she put her bells on and her sword. She yawned again. "Coming, little white bit of Evilness?" she said to the still calmly grooming himself, Mogget.
"I would rather watch. It's quite entertaining." He said as he stopped and lay himself down on the grass covered ground, looking straight at the Dead.
"Suite yourself." Lirael said shrugging her bells on.
Sabriel and Lirael walked forward to meet the Dead grimly. About fifty of them lingered on the shoreline and about twenty where fighting their way to the island, all, save a few, failed. More surged into the rapids. Both woman drew their swords. Then they each drew Saraneth and walked towards their enemy. Together they rang the Abhorson's favorite bell. All tried to resist, but only a few could.
Sabriel unsheathed her sword while Lirael silently handed Lirael her Saraneth and killed the few dead that had survived both the still sounding bell and the rushing water. She came and watched as spirits fled the rotting bodies that she destroyed. Each was armed with either a double bladed axe, or a just their swinging fists. When she finally cleared enough Dead (with Sabriel still ringing her bell and fighting with her sword one handedly) to see the plains beyond once more, she saw only the swish of a black cloak that obviously belonged to the necromancer that was directing the Dead to Sabriel and Lirael.
"Lirael! Behind you!" Sabriel cried desperately as a circle of Dead had appeared around her. Distracted for a few precious moments, a Deadhand with a long axe threw it down on her.
To Lirael it seemed if it had all happened in slow motion. The axe went swooping down where Sabriel's turned head was, and then a wall of white light suddenly was there, making the axe disappear and all the Dead around Sabriel. Mogget had saved Sabriel. Lirael, smiling, turned around to meet an equally happy necromancer with a blazing sword of fire upraised in his hands, striking downwards toward Lirael's head.