Primordial Breaker

The world beneath the Lich Queen's castle was dark. The pale moonlight that had been illuminating the streets was now hidden beneath a thick layer of cloud, and the only form of light was flickering candles within the homes Leander passed by.

Leander had observed a theme as he had exited the castle. It was all in such a state of disrepair, the guards he had passed by to exit all knights in rusting armour. Homes made of rotting wood, the occasional home bearing a broken window that had reflected the light of the moon before it was hidden by the dark clouds.

'This whole place is unnerving, what kind of queen allows her subjects to live in such squalor?'

Although the street was empty. Leander was not alone – far from it – he could feel eyes watching him through the windows. Whenever he turned his head to match their gaze they seemed to shy away from the window disappearing behind their curtains and into their homes. Until one figure didn't hide away, the sight Leander saw caused him to pause.

Illuminated by a soft candle, a skull looked out the window at him, small cyan flames glowing in its eye sockets. After a moment the small skull jumped out of view followed by a clatter.

'Was that, a skull? Has my revival affected my senses, maybe I shouldn't have been so quick to disregard that lich… Whatever her name was.'

The door to the home flew open, and a woman's voice followed the small creature that emerged.

"Abigail! Where do you think you're going at this time of night!"

Illuminated by the glow coming from the home, a small skeleton the height of a child jumped out of the door, a taller skeleton was about to step out but paused seeing Leander. Unlike skeletons one might dig up in a graveyard, these two wore clothes. The fabric was ragged, but certainly items of clothing.

The small skeleton, a – supposedly – young girl judging by her dress stopped in front of Leander. The young girl barely came up to his knee, unsure of what to do, Leander bent one knee to lower himself to her level.

In her hand, she held a single wilting flower. Looking up to Leander she held it up to him. Her jaw opened, and the excited voice of a young girl passed her bony lips.

"You're the hero our queen summoned to protect us! I just know it! My friends said it would never happen, but I knew our queen would succeed!"

Leander's thoughts were unreadable as he watched the girl, his face emotionless, but his eyes focused on the flower the girl was offering him. Despite his inaction, she continued talking.

"Are you going to join the army and protect us from that evil Goddess? My daddy joined the army to protect us… So did my brothers…"

The girl's excited voice slowly grew quieter as her hand holding up the flower wavered. A second later, she regained her previous attitude, practically shouting at Leander.

"Please can you bring them home to us!"

Without a word, Leander took the flower.

Giving a clumsy curtsey, the small girl ran back to her mother. A brief exchange of words could be heard as her mother gave her a telling-off as they entered their home.

"As I'm sure you can see, my people are scared."

Melaine stepped out from a shadow behind Leander. Wringing her hands as she watched the decayed houses surrounding them.

"We're fighting a losing battle. The Demons are powerful and the Goddess' holy power is our greatest weakness… I'm not asking you to fight for some selfish reason, as it happens. You are the only hope my people have left."

Having not taken his eyes off of the flower. Leander's eyes narrowed as a single petal fell from its head. Raising his other hand he caught the petal in his palm. Watching the petal, Leander slowly closed his fist around it.

Standing, he turned back to Melaine.

"Where do I begin?"

"By taking my hand."

As Melaine held her hand out to Leander, he glanced down at it, then back at her.

"Come again?"

Melaine opened her palm wider gesturing for Leander to take it.

"I would like to lend you some gifts that will help you on your travels. But those are back in my castle, and I know a way that is quicker than walking."

With a resigned sigh, Leander took Melaine's hand in his own. A small smile crossed her lips as she giggled. This action caused her to receive another strange look from Leander.

"So, are you just going to hold my hand? Or did this have a purpose?"

Melaine smiled at Leander for a few more moments before raising her other hand, her pointer finger and thumb tightly pressed against each other.

"I was just thinking about how funny it would be if you needed to eat."

As Leander was about to respond, Melaine snapped her fingers. Suddenly the world seemed to shift, Melaine and Leander fell into the shadows as if the ground had become water. As he was fully submerged in the shadows, Leander's senses stretched across the capital of the Undead Kingdom. He could feel every shadow, every dark corner, each movement and action.

Just as quickly as the sensation happened, Leander's sense of self returned as they arrived at their destination. His head spinning Leander stooped to one knee to prevent himself from falling over. As he stooped, Melaine's grip tightened offering him a form of balance.

Looking up, he scowled.

"I suppose if I needed to eat that would have made me throw up my lunch…"

Releasing her hold, Melaine brought a hand up to her hair moving a strand of hair behind her pointy ears a small smile on her lips.

"How very astute of you Hero. My shadow step always messes with people's heads."

Sighing, Leander rose. Looking around he found himself standing in what looked like an armoury. A fireplace took up one wall, and the light produced by its flame was cast across the other varied degrees of weapons on racks lining the walls from floor to ceiling, a few tables were standing in the middle of the room each holding different suits of armour. One of the ravens he had seen in the throne room was also in this room perched atop the fireplace, or perhaps. 

It was only when Leander saw something different from anything he had seen since coming back to life, did he walk towards it.

On one of the tables, a suit of armour lay, unlike the other pieces of armour it looked new. The armour was made from scales that looked like they had been polished every day, dull blue and interlocking creating an impenetrable surface. Running his fingers along the scales they felt cold to the touch.

"This is… Familiar."

Leaning against the table Melaine cocked her head as she watched Leander, as he spoke. She turned towards the fireplace, her dull cyan eyes squinting as she responded.

"Familiar? Do you recognise something from your past life?"

Still holding his fingers against the cold scales. Leander's fingers slowly balled into a fist as he gritted his teeth. For the first time, his calm appearance cracked revealing a potent anger.

"I can't… I can barely remember anything from my past life. Nothing about my family. None of my friends, whether I even had friends. Not how I died, not how I lived, I feel so empty… Empty and cold. As if a piece of me is missing."

Slowly turning to Melaine, Leander did nothing to hide the contempt in his voice.

"Explain what you did to bring me back like this, so, incomplete… Or else the Demon King and that Goddess will be the least of your concerns. Lich Queen."

Melaine was slow to react. Turning to Leander, a frown creased her beautiful face. Her previous playful tone was replaced by a serious tone matching her expression.

"Make no mistake Leander if you threaten my kingdom… I would not hesitate to stop even you. I have sacrificed too much to let my people feel pain, I will burden any and all hardship if it means they get to live a happier life."

A fleeting pained expression overtook Melaine's frown for a moment, stepping away from the table. Melaine ran her fingers through her hair as she took a big breath, spinning around she held her arms open wide.

"You have questions Hero and as the benevolent queen I am. I will answer all I can. You are undead, as an undead you need not eat, you will not tire and have no need for sleep, and you do not need to breathe. Although like myself you may do so for comfort. I made a bargain with a creature not of this world in exchange for your soul, but your soul was broken. And so, part of you never made it to whatever is next. Your memories, your original power. You may regain your old memories as you experience this world, but your original power will only be obtainable if you manage to regain the other half of your soul that still resides in this world."

Leander's anger slowly began to subside as Melaine explained his predicament. Now it was his turn to lean against the table in contemplation of what he had learned. 

'A part of my soul never made it to the afterlife? How could I have died in such a fashion that my soul was split in half?'

As Leander thought to himself, Melaine approached him. Stopping right in front of him, Melaine had to tilt her head as he stood a head taller than her.

"How about we strike a deal, Hero of Peace? If you promise to help my kingdom, I will promise to help you recover what you have lost. Power and memories, a life once lived."

Biting the inside of his cheek, Leander wanted to say something. But he knew it was a pointless endeavour, having already decided to help the Undead Kingdom.

"Fine, we have a deal Lich Queen."