The Undead Screams

WRITER'S NOTE: This is a retrospective of Pepvin Mace trying to raise his loved ones from the dead through his eyes. This short story (a never-before-read chapter) will be added to one of my future books; one of them being the fifth book to The Rissindell Stories: "Sage the Princess Ranger". Please enjoy the reading.

"Hopefully this works..." I said to myself as I entered into the walls stealthly without being detectived or caught from any of the Northern Kingdom of Rissindell guards. It helps when you have magic spells, such as transportation and invisibility, to do such a feat, especially when at night time. The voice inside my head thought otherwise though.

"Ha, that's just child's play. You think I couldn't come up with that?" asked the voice.

"Quiet you!" I shouted mentally while grinding my teeth.

"I'll watch your tongue if I were you. Because after all my soul still rest inside of you," threaten the voice within my head.

"Only partly. I still have full control here, you know," I noted thoughtfully.

"Oh, lucky you!" replied the voice with a sarcastic tone. So sarcastic that he even asked me the following: "Would you like a cookie?"

To that, I replied: "Not now, I'm busy at the moment. Just please, let me think."

Irritated, the voice finally goes: "Fine then. I'll shut my mouth for once. Hopefully your brain doesn't burn too much for overthinking."

There came silence from within my head (finally) as I continue to stealthly work my way around the guards, knights and citizens of the Northern Kingdom. Along with the way, I found a random shovel and manifest it without anyone batting a eye.

I have been gathering up a lot of weapons lately. From what the voice has mentioning, I need to gather certain items (by which he calls them "ancient weapons") in order to gain something. The voice of course hasn't told me what it all was nor what was there to gain. I'm just the errand boy at this point.

So far I have gathered up five different, unique weapons out of the ten needed. I am literally halfway done. 3 of them were from the country of Alladornis while the other two were from the Islands of Between Countries. The remaining five were located somewhere scattered in the country of Rissindell. One of them being in the Northern Kingdom so after this reunion of mine, I'll be heading to the location the voice has been cramming about non-stop upon arrival.

The village hasn't changed much since I have been over here. Minus the blacksmith hut that Gerlard burned down nearly 20 years ago. It's now a brand new hut with bigger space!? I guess Terrance and Ruth decided to upgrade the so-called King's old home. I wonder what Joseph would think. Today we are about to find out.

Can't believe it's been at least 20 years now since I last set foot in my hometown. Never would have guessed I would be back here but there's two things or rather people I would like to return to me: Joseph and my mother.

The only two people in this world that I hold dearly in my heart. Without them, I won't be the man I am today. I can't wait to see them.

I bypass the new foundation of the blacksmith hut and ended up on the hill where both Joseph and my mother lay. Their graves were still intact thankfully. Who knows if they would have been relocated after all these years. Next thing I did was summon the shovel I took earlier, and started digging.

I dug out the two graves until I reached the coffins. Once I was done digging, the next thing I did was open the long boxes. When I opened my mother's, it was something a son should never see. She was literally a skeleton with little to no flesh or hair on her. I study myself and proceeded to open Joseph's coffin where his ash remained there. At least with him I didn't have to see the sight of his dead corpse like my poor dear mother.

After opening up the coffins, I then pulled myself out and begun the following spell: “Make what was thought dead, recover from the jaws of a serpent..." Purple and red energy came forth from my hands as it spreads to the coffins of my loved ones.

The skeleton of my mother begun twitching while Joseph's ash moved around. Eventually the two of them were fully recovered as if they were unscathed. My mother regained flesh along with her hair while Joseph was given the same way. My loved ones were finally up and moving. However, they both were acting strangely.

For when the two of them opened their eyes, they were both screaming in the most agonizing pain I ever seen. My mother and mentor were both looking at me simultaneously pleading with their souls to return to the dead.

"Please, Pepvin..." my mother mouthed the words without using any bell or sign.

Joseph finished the sentence: "...make it stop."

My eyes welled up as my loved ones pleaded for their pain to stop. I wish this wasn't the case. If only, I had more than just a minute of their time, I would be satisfied. However, seeing them hurting made things just inconveniently worse.

"Who cares?" said the nonchalant voice from within my head. "They are already dead to begin with."

"But they are suffering," I replied back. "They must go back and rest in peace."

"You insignificant fool! Do you know how many souls I have brought back from the dead? Too many to count, I'll tell you!"

"Yes, but my mother and Joseph are different. They seemed to be a peace until we barge in to bring them back."

"They're nothing but a couple of wimps then. Literally every soul I gathered not once complained about being risen back from the dead. They're no different than you are."

"Enough! They probably been slumbering far too long to come back from the living. Especially considering we both know how you like to bring back people from the dead within a good day or so. I'm releasing their souls back to their bodies."

"Do that, and I'll fight you over your soul to do what I wanted to do it the first place."

"By all means, fight me all you want. I ain't seeing my loved ones suffer anymore." I then turned to both my mom and Joseph whispering: "I love you both equally. I'm so sorry", before then shouting another spell: "What once was brought back to live, take them back to the place of the undead divine!"

Both my mother and Joseph's body went silent there in their coffins. They returned to the states they were in before I woke them up. I teared my eyes out like there was no tomorrow with all my sorrow. Just before I gotten up to clean up the mess I had made, I felt a tug within myself. I was next to fight over control and possession of my body right on that hill.