Two souls met in the desolate soulscape of the Raise Undead Servant spell, only a few steps away from each other.
Seconds slowed down, becoming minutes, as Aleric met the justicar's gaze.
As souls, neither of them had their magic or physical strength. The clothing and armor they wore were mere conventions of this realm. In truth, this was a battle of wills.
Aleric was determined to subdue his enemy; even more, the soulscape itself was on his side, since it was created by his magic.
But in death, Justicar Esvan's desire to kill the necromancer grew even stronger than it was in life! And the faint remains of Light magic in his body were shining through the darkness, creating a faint halo around the justicar.
"Necromancer… After I defeat you, my soul will be reborn in Light and join the heavenly host! And your death at my hands will make my afterlife only sweeter," the justicar said.
He raised a hand, and the aura around him transformed, becoming plate armor and a sword made from pure light.
"The only afterlife you will be seeing is the one I give you, templar," Aleric replied.
He also drew on the magic given to him by his surroundings—but he directed it straight at the justicar.
Dark shadows rose from the ground and surrounded him with long tendrils. With a battlecry, the justicar cut several with his blade, but there were dozens more holding his feet and trying to get a grip on his arms.
Aleric pulled out a dagger from his sleeve—an ordinary blade, not imbued with his spell's power—and charged. His entire focus was on aiming this strike for the neck gap in the justicar's armor.
Aleric left not a thought for defense. If he missed, the justicar would free himself and counterattack while Aleric was vulnerable. He was betting his all on this strike!
Seeing this, the justicar tore at the shadow tendrils even more furiously.
Who would be faster—Aleric's blow, or Justicar Esvan's hand trying to block it?
Only their will was deciding it!
The justicar was a man who spent years training and learning. Those were harsh exercises—but not as harsh as Aleric's lone survival.
Aleric's will to live flared so brightly that it burned through the soulscape itself, setting his dagger aflame.
Then it pierced the justicar's neck.
Esvan let out a silent scream. His armor and sword of Light disappeared, just like his ability to resist. The shadow tendrils pinned his limbs, and then the darkness swallowed the rest of him.
Aleric opened his eyes to reality, knowing that his spell succeeded.
An instant later, his knees buckled, and he plopped on the ground. He felt as if he spent a day carrying sacks of bricks.
In front of him, the justicar's corpse twitched, then slowly rose. There were no eerie lights glowing in the justicar's eyes, but they looked around with clarity that undead slaves didn't have.
The undead justicar turned toward Aleric, and recognition flared on his face.
"You… You raised me. The necromancer…"
With the help of his staff, Aleric stood up. Despite his undead servant's attitude, he had no fear—only sheer joy.
He felt the bond between himself and this zombie. Aleric's Dark magic was fueling the undead justicar—no matter his feelings in life, now he could be nothing but loyal.
"Yes, I am. Call me 'master', or 'Master Aleric', or 'Master Fenn'."
"Yes, Master Fenn."
Aleric chuckled. Spine Staff joined him.
"Amazing, master! Such an astounding success… Despite such a hard task! Now, test how much of his previous knowledge and skills he has retained. Raise Undead Servant spell can harm the souls, especially those that resist it."
Aleric nodded.
"What's your name, templar?"
"Justicar Samuel Esvan." The zombie paused. "Not a justicar anymore."
"Do you hate me, Samuel?" Aleric asked curiously.
"No, master."
"Hm… What if I suddenly died, and you didn't have to serve me anymore? What would you do?"
"I would… See if my family is alright. And then… Protect them."
"And what if I just gave you some free time? What would you do to not get bored?"
"I would take care of my gear first. Then pray… Or… Maybe I would just take a walk. Praying seems pointless now."
"It looks like the servant regained some of his personality, although it's warped by his revival, of course," Spine Staff said. "This is a sign that his soul wasn't harmed too badly! Although personality itself, of course, is useless for a servant."
Aleric shook his head, laughing.
"Not at all! I think it's very entertaining. Much more entertaining than whatever you have instead of personality, Staff."
The staff opened its jaw, then closed it. For once in a while, it was speechless purely because it didn't know how to react.
Still grinning, Aleric looked at Samuel again.
"How are you feeling? Do you think you can still fight as well as in life?"
"Definitely not. In life, I was a paladin of Light and used Light magic to assist myself in combat. Now…" the zombie raised a palm and clenched it into a fist. "I still have my mana. But it can't become Light."
This, Aleric had guessed already. If Samuel tried to gather any Light energy, it would only harm him—just like Dark energy harmed living creatures.
It was why Dark mages had to spend years learning how to gather Dark energy without harming themselves. But since Samuel wasn't a human, he was a creature of pure Dark, Aleric doubted that even with training, he'd be able to use Light magic.
"What about your swordsmanship, though?" Aleric looked around. "You won't be able to use your old sword, but there are many other good weapons piled over there. Take whichever you like."