Well Here's chapter 2 everyone, thankyou soo much to GOGHOTi for that glowing review, you really made me want to keep writing.

Disclaimer: I only own my bits, the world and traditional characters are all owned by Garth Nix.

FLAWLESS EVIL

An Unexpected Visit

The wind was chill, but to the two boys standing on the hill it was inconsequential. Below them lay the town of Navis. In the moonlight they could see it was surrounded by thick walls and constructed of heavy stone to keep out menaces both living and dead. A charter light on the guardhouse flickered and the pale boy began his descent, as he walked the snow barely pressed beneath his feet and the squeak of new snow was lost in the wind. The spirit boy left no mark of his passage at all.

Reaching the bottom of the hill the pale boy, now clothed, paused. Then as his companion faded into the night, the pale boy stepped into the circle of light around the gatehouse. In the bright white glow of the charter lights he was a remarkable sight. He wore soft, white boots with high quality, white trousers and on both his forearms he wore white cloth bracers with small knife handles protruding at the wrist end. Across his bare chest hung the hallmark bandolier of a necromancer, the bell handles glinting in the charter light. Unlike most, however, his was made entirely of white materials as well.

From the guardhouse window above a voice called down, "Who are you, and what is your purpose here fiend?" The pale boy looked up at the guard and smiled, "I am Reece Daw of course, and I am your salvation."

At that the guard stuck his head right out the window and looked down at the boy in shock. What sort of mad trick is this? he thought. Out loud he called down, "Why should we believe you? You wear the bells of a necromancer and stand half naked in the snow yet you are unaffected by the cold. Only the dead do act in such a way."

Reaching up with his hand Reece brushed aside his fringe, as he stared up at the guard a charter mark flashed ice blue on his forehead. "Send out your Charter Mages, I am untainted, you will see."

The guards head pulled back inside the window and there was a quiet muttering. After a long moment there was a creaking and the heavy iron gates opened. Three figures stepped out, warmly dressed with hoods up against the wind. Two of them clinked as they walked, revealing the presence or chain mail, and carried halberds laced with charter spells. The third approached right up to Reece and removed a glove from one hand, carefully he reached up and pressed his finger to the charter mark on Reece's forehead. Again it flashed ice blue and this time the charter mages flashed green in response.

Stepping back the charter mage removed his hood and stared at the pale boy in surprise, "How is this possible, that you should be a necromancer and of the charter?" Cocking his head to one side a little Reece simply grinned, "Everything impossible is an illusion; remember that," he paused and looked around at the guards, "well is anyone going to let me in now? It is cold out here you know."

Flustered the charter mage quickly led the way back through the gates, and as the wind's wailing reached a new height the great iron gates sealed shut with a resounding clang.

***

Sabriel stood just outside the garden door with Sanar and Ryelle. They had stopped her before she entered the house and while one of them kept the others distracted at the door the other urgently whispered a message to Sabriel, "Sameth must not return to Belisaere, if he goes there before the moon has waxed twice he will die."

Quickly so as not to seem suspicious Sanar then caught Sabriel's hand and led her inside, smiling at the others comments on what a wonderful surprise it was to see them here. After some pleasantries and after Lirael had hugged them both and asked how things were back at the glacier the twins suddenly grew serious again though. "As much as we are happy to see you all, especially our sister Lirael, we do not come bearing good news. Perhaps it is best we go someplace where we can talk that is perhaps more comfortable than standing."

The sudden change of tone caught most of them off-guard and there a moment of awkward silence before Touchstone began shooing everyone towards the dining room, "Sure… there are plenty of chairs in the dining room so we shall talk there." Sanar and Ryelle inclined their heads in appreciation of the effort and followed behind the others.

Sabriel held back though and approached Sanar carefully, "What did you mean earlier? You have to tell me more, please, he's my son." Sanar looked sorrowful as she gazed into Sabriel's face, "I am sorry my child, but that is all we know."

When everyone was seated at the dining table, or in Mogget's case 'on' the dining table, one of the twins stood, "We are here because we have 'seen' something, a menace sealed away in the glacier a thousand years ago has returned, a necromancer, and a very, very old one. Alas when we attempted to reach him ourselves he had already escaped, we failed and now we must bring this to you because no one else has a chance."

"We beat Orannis, how hard can another necromancer be?" Sameth's joking tones quickly died when Mogget interrupted. "Fool, you well know that Orannis was only defeated because we struck him in his earliest moment of weakness." Turning his cat eyes upon Ryelle who had not yet spoken he asked, "This is the white-mancer isn't it?"

Ryelle looked down but answered the question nonetheless, "Indeed, the white-mancer has returned."

As more voices clamoured to ask questions Mogget wearily closed his eyes and, with a gentle sigh, rested his head on his paws once again.

Well there it is. I hope you like it because I had a frustrating moment of writers block in the middle of the Sabriel section so then I obsessed over it for ages till I felt it was right and well... I still have my doubts.

The stories moving along though, see how many hints of the future you can pick out ;)

Please R&R, I love to hear from others and I'll try and get the next chapter up as quickly as I got this one up. (No promises though ;) )