Alistair Salders

Alistair Salders is the youngest child of Natalie and Jack Salders, and is the brother of Kyle and Janet. He was killed and became one of the first Archytes and has been credited as the most powerful being in the world. During the War of the Dead, he served the Supreme King as one of the top commanders in his army. Following the Supreme King's defeat, Alistair and Jordan Black jointly ruled the Undead through the Archyte Council. With the return of the Supreme King, and the Second War of the Dead, Alistair was captured and his will overridden in order to serve him faithfully. Following the conclusion of the Second War, and the deaths of both the Supreme King and Jordan, Alistair now rules the Undead.

Early Life
Alistair was the third - and last - child to be born to Jack and Natalie Salders, during winter in 1987. Being the youngest his mother was especially protective of him. Growing up, his older brother and sister - Kyle and Janet - were prone to playing pranks on him as they saw him as an easy target. When he was five, he was duct taped to a chair for over an hour. At one point, they tricked him into thinking the house was haunted, causing him to run away and found a few hours later with bruises and cuts. Although he forgave his siblings later on in life, both of them felt guilty enough to never trick him again.

Not long after his eleventh birthday, his father was critically wounded in a severe car crash. Alistair was with his family as Jack passed away from his injuries. Alistair later confided to Janet that witnessing his father dying made him horrified of the notion of dying himself and would do anything to escape it.

Attending high school, he excelled at most of his subjects but struggled with literature, even having his teacher comment on his poor grades openly. To avoid failing, he asked for help from one of his classmates: Riley Thornton. During Riley's tutoring, the two became close and started dating. With Riley's help, Alistair barely managed to pass the subject. Ecstatic, Alistair came out to his family and friends while simultaneously revealing his relationship with Riley.

Organising with Janet to be picked up from school, he became concerned when she didn't arrive after an hour. After calling the rest of his family and her friends, they began to search for her and involved the police. Searching for two days, she was found beaten, abused and left for dead in a park. Despite the police eventually apprehending her attacker and undergoing a court hearing, he managed to evade any criminal charges and a prison sentence due to an error in handling evidence. While Alistair and his family comforted Janet, Alistair caught the eye of Arthur who smirked at him. Infuriated, Alistair told him in private that he will one day suffer. Arthur took little notice of him and walked away.

After graduating from high school, and with the intention of going to university, Alistair and Riley both moved in together in share accommodation with three other people. Alistair found himself unable to settle on any type of course, often changing within a year. He eventually settled on politics.

Death and Reanimation
A month before Riley's birthday, Alistair planned to purchase an antique watch in Adelaide and left to obtain it. Driving back home from Adelaide, he stopped to buy food at a small town a few hours out from Melbourne. Exploring the town, he found that it looked abandoned with no signs of people anywhere. Unnerved, he raced to his car only to find it blocked by people who had unusual wounds. Realising that something was wrong, he began to flee but quickly found himself surrounded. After a brief struggle, Alistair was blocked and unable to run away. Panicking, a man appeared and pins Alistair telekinetically. Much to both the man's and Alistair's surprise, Alistair displayed a minor resistance by trying to break free. The man, impressed with this, claims Alistair will be valuable to him. Helpless, Alistair watched as the man brandished a long knife and, pleading for his life, is thrust into his chest. Afraid of his approaching death, Alistair futilely fought against it but eventually succumbed to his wounds.

His body was eventually moved inside an subsequently reanimated by the man. Upon his revival, Alistair awoke with a start and came to realise that he had somehow returned when he found the wound on his chest. The man, introducing himself as Richard Thompson, explained to Alistair that he had been chosen and would serve him as a powerful instrument of his will and told Alistair his desire to dominate humanity. Horrified, Alistair tried to attack him but was stopped immediately. Torturing him, Thompson revealed that he had the power to control all undead which now included Alistair and that, if he would disobey him again, he will either turn Alistair into one of his mindless slaves or destroy him. Seeing no other option, Alistair agreed to serve.

Alistair quickly meets Jordan Black, another undead who has retained his mind, who begins to teach him about magic. As the lessons continue, much to the frustration of Thompson, Alistair is unable to demonstrate the magical potential that he detected. Jordan later contemplated that Alistair was secretly able to use magic but didn't want to use it for Thompson's purposes, to which Alistair only hinted at. Eventually, Alistair proved his magical abilities were manifesting quickly when Thompson threatened him.

While Alistair and Jordan continued to practice and hone their abilities, Thompson had been slowly increasing the number of undead under his thrall. He revealed his intention to attack Melbourne and build a true army out of the chaos. Torn between the evil that Thompson was planning and his desire to survive, Alistair aided Thompson in his plans under threat of death.

Melbourne Massacre
Although Thompson wanted to strike at larger towns to bring more undead under his control, both Jordan and Alistair countered that it would raise too much suspicion and they would never make it to Melbourne. Instead, they would board a train, arriving at night, and the undead horde would spread out around the city under the guise of a stunt before attacking. Pleased with the plan, Thompson ordered Alistair and Jordan to gather the undead and prepare.

As expected, there was only minimal reaction to the undead when they arrived in Melbourne. Alistair commanded a portion of the undead to one section of the city while Jordan and Thompson took others: effectively cornering the humans. At Thompson's orders, Alistair sent the undead to attack every human in sight.

Much to Alistair's sorrow, the outcome was far more devastating that he anticipated. In less than two hours, Melbourne had become a bloodbath. There had been little resistance from the police and the undead had slaughtered a significant number of people in the ensuing fear and disorder. Unwilling to participate, Alistair could only watch as the city became a graveyard.

As per Thompson's wishes, Alistair reanimated those that had fallen and sent them to attack the outlying suburbs. Eventually, a human force managed to get through into Melbourne to investigate and to kill anyone who might be responsible. Alistair and Jordan struggled to repel them but managed to do so after a grueling fight. Learning that more resistance was taking place, Thompson ordered Alistair and Jordan to engage them and to personally oversee the invasion. This eventually led Alistair to come across Ryan, who was fleeing among the civilians. Although Ryan didn't notice him, Alistair saw Ryan was in danger and defiantly diverted the undead from him despite Thompson's threats and mental assaults. Thompson eventually found that Alistair's father, Jack Salders, had died and subsequently revived him. For Alistair's betrayal, Thompson gave him an ultimatum: to kill his father in cold blood or be destroyed himself. Unwilling to do so and pleading, he relented at Jack's request. Each time Alistair struck him down, Thompson managed to bring him back and force Alistair again and again to murder his father. Satisfied in seeing Alistair apparently broken, Thompson left Alistair with what was left of Jack's corpse. By then, Alistair's hatred of Thompson magnified and vowed to get revenge on him some day. Until then, he would act as his faithful servant.

With the undead ravaging everything in their path and the humans struggling to keep them at bay, Alistair, realising that the war that had been started could last for a long time, returned back to the city and began to consolidate his position. He ordered the construction of a fortress, which would become known as the Black Citadel, that could withstand a direct attack in case of retaliation. Thompson gave him free reign to do so as he forced Alistair and Jordan to be responsible for the war that he had started.

Creating the Necromancers
To become more efficient in controlling the undead at a micro level and to raise more undead, Jordan proposed that they train others in magic but limit their capabilities which would add to the hierarchy to which Thompson agreed. After being taught by Thompson to free undead minds, Alistair and Jordan searched within undead ranks for potential candidates and each picked twenty.

Beginning to teach those he picked, Alistair quickly found that most were incapable of producing the results he required. Conscious of Thompson's potential anger at his failure, Alistair took an additional twenty to train in the hopes that he would find enough undead with suitable skills.

He took an interest in one of his pupils, Stacey Morewell, who he could sense had significant potential but she struggled to manifest her powers. Pressuring her, Alistair resorted to attacking her which provoked a strong response much to Alistair's delight. Pleased with her and the success of twenty-eight others, he planned to present them to Thompson. Before he could do so, Stacey jumped from a building and killed herself. Saddened by the loss, Alistair nonetheless displayed his new students to Thompson while keeping Stacey's existence a secret. It was then that Thompson demanded that all address him as the Supreme King.

With the Supreme King satisfied with the results, he demanded greater success at the war effort. Alistair sent most of his students, to be now known as Necromancers, to attack the humans and raise as many undead as possible while keeping a few at the citadel to help him train additional Necromancers. This proved to be incredibly successful and the undead managed to stretch out much further.

At this stage, the undead had claimed much of central Victoria with Alistair being responsible for more than 400,000 undead. Most of the population in Victoria had moved to the outlying states with a great number hoping to get out of the country completely. With Alistair being firmly entrenched in Melbourne, the Supreme King ordered Jordan to move his forces to the other side of Australia to cut off potential refugees.

Expansion
Despite a lack of response from other countries, Alistair, Jordan and the Supreme King believed it was a matter of time before they reacted. To preempt any attack, they agreed that they would need to start invasions elsewhere. Using Necromancers disguised as refugees, they would travel to other countries and raise an army of undead.

Alistair sent out more than fifty Necromancers in the hopes that some might be able to leave the country. Between the Necromancers sent by Alistair and Jordan's own, only twelve managed to leave. Despite the few Necromancers that managed to leave, their numbers proved enough. Upon arriving in Tokyo, Beijing, Auckland, New York and Paris, each city was quickly besieged by undead forces within a week.

From Australia, Alistair guided his Necromancers in attacking the humans. However, he was aware that he could not reinforce them as the Australian government prevented travelling between countries. Although the time was not yet right, Alistair moved his forces to capture all of the airports and to find any pilots that might be still alive to eventually send additional Necromancers.

Simultaneously, Alistair initiated more offensives against mankind in Australia. He sent various teams to either sabotage or take control of transport infrastructure in order to cripple the movement of fleeing civilians. Despite a great number of people having already fled from Victoria, there were still enough to restrict their movements. Additionally, Alistair planned to use the networks to allow greater movement of his forces to other regions of Australia.

Overseeing his forces, Alistair continuously came across a Walker who managed to occasionally defy his orders to a certain extent. Curious, Alistair summoned one of his Necromancers and ordered him to find the Walker in question. Upon seeing him, Alistair felt an unusual amount of immense pity for the boy. Unwilling to let him remain in his current state, Alistair elevated Ryan in becoming a Necromancer and freed his mind. Confused and disorientated, Alistair introduced himself and promised that he would train him and watch out for him. Alistair later confessed that something drew him to free Ryan and aim to befriend him.

It was at this time that Alistair began to test what his magic could do, experimenting upon himself with Jordan also acting as a volunteer. After numerous months, Alistair and Jordan managed to tie their a portion of their essence to a physical object. Although untested, they each speculated that doing so would allow them to survive even if their body was destroyed.

Between Alistair's and Jordan's joint attacks against them, the Australian forces were initially reeling from the constant barrages of onslaughts. Much to Alistair's shock, he found that his progress was stunted by the gradual increase of defence raised against the undead. With unease, he was forced to report this to the Supreme King who took it as a admittance of failure on Alistair's part. Privately fuming, he apologised to the Supreme King and promised better results in the future. To oversee his efforts, the Supreme King sent his newest Archyte, Regina Davis, to ensure that Alistair succeeded.

Although initially hesitant working with Regina believing that she and the Supreme King would dispose of him, the two bonded over their predicament, both subtly hinting to each other about their thoughts regarding the war. Regina even asked Alistair to teach her more about magic, to which he accepted. As her payment, she continuously gave favourable reports to the Supreme King of Alistair's progress and affirmations of his loyalty. Though Regina was allowed command of Alistair's forces, an understanding between the two developed in that Alistair would remain in control, Regina commenting on her lack of knowledge regarding military strategy.

Conflict with the United Defence Protectorate
In order to take control of more land, Alistair commanded his forces to gather the necessary materials and begin making various outposts close to enemy lines and constructing strongholds. To ensure success, Alistair sent a considerable number of his forces for the strongholds while sending less to the outposts. His plan was two fold: redirect the focus of the human resistance towards them and away from Melbourne, the other allowing Alistair to launch more and quicker assaults. Though Alistair's forces encountered some fighting, the humans were still unprepared for the sheer numbers of the undead protecting the buildings.

Much to his surprise, Alistair's smaller forces were constantly routed through the use of guerrilla tactics. Alistair eventually concluded that, while independent of the main army, it received a certain degree of support and assistance.

Wishing to test and expose this force, Alistair continuously sent small numbers of undead against them in the hopes of studying them. During this time, Alistair commanded Thomas, an ambitious necromancer, to lead a sizable force north to attack Fort Tyson. To Alistair's chagrin, the UDP managed to route them and tricked Thomas into splitting his forces which allowed the UDP to systematically wipe them and him out.

Not wishing to take any more chances on losing ground, Alistair ordered his necromancers to march with the dead and to scour the land for the UDP. A deadly game of cat and mouse ensued between the two; Alistair's forces occasionally catching members of the UDP while also suffering casualties from retaliation. Satisfied that the UDP's attention was diverted, Alistair organised for a new bastion to be built less than 100km away from Fort Tyson. To personally oversee the operation, Alistair sent Ryan to accompany the other Necromancers and Walkers charged with the bastion's construction.

During a scouting mission, a Necromancer found a woman who was badly beaten and on the brink of death at a damaged encampment. Intrigued and bemused by the amount of hate in her eyes resulted in him bringing her back to his master.

When first seeing her, Alistair became annoyed at the Necromancer's actions and demanded an explanation. He reasoned that the undead had harmed countless people and that their fate was simply to be turned to further the war effort. Believing that he and the other undead had more important matters such as dealing with the UDP, he ordered the Necromancer to kill and turn her. At hearing the name, the woman whispered 'kill them all.' Curious, Alistair inquired as to why she said that but she quickly lost consciousness before he could receive an answer. Wishing to know more from her, he organised for her to be tended to and taken care of.

Eventually Alistair's forces at his new bastion engaged with the UDP in conflict, resulting in the UDP planting explosives and causing significant damage to it which left the rest of the undead, including Ryan, exposed. The fighting concluded when Ryan was captured and the remaining Necromancers retreated with the bulk of the forces.

Fearing for his safety and furious at himself for once again underestimating the UDP, Alistair managed to locate Ryan psychically and spoke through him to their leader, Craig Peterson, taunting him and claiming he was responsible for the Melbourne Massacre that started the War. Offering to surrender if Ryan is released, Alistair's ploy worked. Peterson agreed to the terms and demanded Alistair hand himself over within three hours.

Alistair met with Peterson at the deadline and requested Ryan be handed over to him otherwise the UDP would be slaughtered. Peterson complied and let Ryan go to claim the bigger prize. With Ryan safe, Alistair submitted himself to the UDP's custody and ordered his forces to retreat. Peterson tried to interrogate Alistair but found it to be ineffective given Alistair's higher pain tolerance and healing capabilities. Engaging in a verbal spar in which Alistair ridiculed Peterson's attempts to save mankind, ending with Peterson shooting Alistair and setting his body on fire. Alistair's body disintegrated in the fire while his spirit was left disembodied.

Confident of the tests he and Jordan had conducted with their Soul Anchors, Alistair returned to his citadel and slowly gathered enough energy to reform his body. Even during this, he had the ability to command his forces. He ordered his forces to converge on the UDP and surround them. With his body restored, Alistair met with his forces and prepared to end the UDP once and for all.

Circling the UDP at their encampment, Alistair revealed himself to the shock of the UDP and declared himself the victor. Unwilling to accept defeat, Peterson and the UDP engaged with Alistair and his army but quickly found themselves unable to stand against Alistair's magic and the sheer number of undead. Alistair ordered his Necromancers to incapacitate the remaining UDP, including Peterson, while reanimating the rest and proceeded to return back to his citadel.

The remaining UDP fighters found themselves at the mercy of Erica and her wishes with the exception of Peterson, whom Alistair planned to personally torture. Alistair watched as Erica personally slew the UDP fighters with satisfaction. As his punishment for harming Ryan and 'killing' Alistair, Peterson was condemned to suffer whatever horrors Alistair visited upon him. This effectively ended the threat of the UDP with the remaining supporters joining the ranks of other paramilitary forces.

To cement Erica's status within the undead ranks, Alistair took her to the Supreme King and persuaded him to turn her into another Archyte to which the Supreme King complied. Now an Archyte, Erica was ordered to join the invading forces in America and to conquer the continent in his name. Alistair would also train her with using magic.

Moving Against Fort Tyson
Without the UDP to be a constant thorn, Alistair found himself able to expand further and faster but remained cautious as he expected the humans to have increased their defences while he had focused on the UDP. Alistair also knew that he had no information on Fort Tyson except for what he had learned from captured civilians and UDP members.

By chance, he was approached by Christopher Horner who was willing to turn traitor if it meant securing himself within the undead ranks. Amazed at his fortune, Alistair accepted his terms. From Christopher, Alistair learned much about Fort Tyson and the commanders in charge. To ensure Christopher had access to Fort Tyson's security, Alistair provided him with undead masquerading as Necromancers that Christopher subdued so as to present them to the commanders of Fort Tyson. In order to keep in contact, Alistair was given transmitters by Christopher.

Leaving Christopher on his own designs, Alistair continued onward and proceeded to capture more humans and land. His actions didn't go unnoticed and found that Fort Tyson was instigating similar tactics against his forces that the UDP utilised. Regardless, Alistair pushed forward with his plans.

During an assault on a base of operations under Fort Tyson, he watched his forces engaged with the humans and noted the resourcefulness of some of his Necromancers. Impressed with their skills, he offered to elevate them in the undead ranks. Though humbled by his offer, one of the Necromancers spoke out about the undead's current lack of subtlety, scouting and assassination. Intrigued by her words, Alistair agreed with her assessment and asked the gathered Necromancers if they would be willing to be experimented on to create a new type of undead to which they all agreed. Over time, Alistair and the Necromancers managed to create the Reapers, undead who would be more powerful than Necromancers, highly skilled at magic, able to spy upon and sabotage the humans efforts at resistance and extremely loyal to Alistair.

The Reapers were immediately put to use and were exceptionally effective in their tasks. Thanks to them, Alistair learned much more about the humans operations, movements, numbers and weapons. Although he asked them to get inside Fort Tyson, they were unable to due to a higher level of security and surveillance than the Reapers and Alistair originally anticipated. Though not displeased with their efforts, Alistair's desire to raze Fort Tyson grew as it stood as a powerful shield protecting humans north of it.

As fate would have it, Christopher contacted Alistair and informed him of his progress: he had gained access to Fort Tyson's security and had gained substantial control over the fortress. Christopher directed Alistair to one of the Fort's entrances near a mountain where he would be able to storm the Fort and kill its inhabitants. Ecstatic, Alistair sent a steady stream of undead to prepare for the attack but not so many as to raise serious alarms.

Gathering his host of undead, Alistair waited for Christopher to open the door. As the door came to life, it immediately slammed shut. Alistair demanded an answer from Christopher only to be informed that he would not fail before gun shots were heard through the transmitter. Assessing the situation, Alistair believed that Christopher was doomed to fail. He surmised that Christopher's ploy had been discovered and would either be captured or killed. Regardless of how it ended for him, Alistair proceeded to act. Gathering an enormous amount of energy, he channeled it into the mountain, shaking the land and the Fort inside. He would not be denied destroying Fort Tyson and would raze the mountain to do so. Continuing his attack, he tore at the mountain and created a powerful matrix of magical energy that ripped open the mountain. Locked in strengthening the magical matrix, he was helpless to stop a missile that was fired directly at it. Roaring in anger, the collision caused an explosion that swept him and his army away but also caused further damage to the mountain. Weakened, the Reapers took command of the host from Alistair and withdrew from Fort Tyson.

Creation of the Archyte Council
Having recovered by the time he returned to his citadel, Alistair faced the ire of the Supreme King who was furious at Alistair's failure. Despite this, the Supreme King admitted that Alistair was still one of his best servants and remarked that, despite Alistair having failed to destroy Fort Tyson, he was nonetheless an effective commander. To ensure that the undead was being properly organised by the other Archytes, the Supreme King summoned Jordan and requested that the two would form a group that would comprise of all the Archytes which would be overseen by them, and then in turn report to the Supreme King. Furthermore, Jordan and Alistair would assist the other Archytes where necessary.

Gathering all of the Archytes at his fortress, the Supreme King declared that Alistair and Jordan were their superiors. Getting to know the other Archytes, Alistair immediately held a disdain for Ewan Rogers, noting to Jordan in private he was as mad as the Supreme King.

Entering Fort Sentinel
As agreed, Alistair met with Brian Wells, who was privy to the plan, in plain clothes. Alistair offered a suggestion: Brian would sneak Alistair in while bringing back the dead to Fort Sentinel for examination and cremation. Before Brian could object, Alistair plunged a broken pipe into his own chest and collapsed. Although still intact and conscious, Alistair pretended to be inanimate and was taken by Brian's squad to be brought to Fort Sentinel.

Alistair was eventually brought to the Sentinel Medics and was examined, fooling all of them. Privately, Alistair viewed one of the medics who attended to him, the medic lamenting at Alistair's apparent misfortune before placing him in a furnace to be cremated. Readying the furnace, the medic left. Before the flames could burn him, Alistair escaped the furnace and was greeted by Kyle.

Donning suitable clothes, Kyle escorted Alistair to the rest of the commanders. Commenting on their apparent intelligence and capabilities that Alistair hadn't been fully aware of, he laid out his plans to orchestrate Travis Walters being brought to him and preparing him to fight the Supreme King while simultaneously delaying military acts against the humans, or an outright refusal to fight them when possible. With the commanders in agreement, with the exception of Amanda Turner, he returned to the Black Citadel

Physical Appearance
Alistair is a handsome male who is tall, has a pale complexion and dark hair. One striking feature is his eyes, a deep blue, that have been noted as being 'stunning' and 'haunting.' His hair is styled in a messy fashion which he maintains even during the War. Alistair also has an athletic physique due to him and his brother, Kyle, running frequently.

After he was turned into an undead he became much paler, no longer having a living body that had a heartbeat or warmth. He also bears a faint scar from where the Supreme King wounded him that is impossible to heal, a trait that many who fell personally to the Supreme King also possess.

During the War, he often wore a black long coat that had the left coat tail end at his knees while the right coat tail fell to above his ankles along with other dark clothes. He also carried his staff everywhere he went.

Following the conclusion of the War, he opted for suits and other attire that matched both his desire to reclaim vestiges of his former life while also frequently speaking to politicians and the public.

Having being captured and turned into a slave by the Supreme King, he was often expressionless and speechless, being a shadow of his former self. His clothes suffered from damage and became dirty. No longer having access to his staff, Alistair used two short swords that were 'formidable' but were weaker in comparison to his staff.

Personality
Having been killed and brought back by the Supreme King changed Alistair. He was faced with difficult choices and having to murder other people for his new master. He was subject to constant physical and psychological torture to shape him in carrying out the Supreme King's agenda. The experiences made Alistair ruthless and cruel. He became desensitised to the deaths of people around him and no longer hesitated in bringing about destruction to his enemies or others he deemed as necessary targets. Prior to becoming an Archyte, Alistair was compassionate and unable to bring himself to harm others, demonstrating the severe effects of the Supreme King's actions had on Alistair.

Alistair is cold, stoic, ambitious, intelligent, cunning and manipulative. He has proven that he is able to formulate long reaching plans and strategies while accurately predicting how people will act, willing to use others, even friends and family, as tools. Alistair is also quite capable to fool and trick others with whatever facade or image he wishes to project. He successfully feigned allegiance to the Supreme King and managing to convince him that Alistair was one of his most trusted servants. His skill at this deception was orchestrated so well that the Supreme King did not expect Alistair to betray him and simultaneously plot his downfall. Both during and after the War, Alistair managed to make allies out of enemies or even broker truces. He has also displayed a degree of skill in politics and being able to outmaneuver his opponents and gather public support.

Alistair maintains a calm and reserved approach to everyone and everything around him, not giving into his emotions. He has the foresight to act appropriately when planning for the future, able to forge alliances and manipulate people to achieve his goals. Even when he loathes or has a vendetta against someone, he seldom lets such feelings dictate his actions and will only pursue his personal desires if they fit into his plans or he no longer finds them useful. He often chastises others if he believes that they have wasted an opportunity or failed to exploit a person or situation to their advantage. Despite this, Alistair is incredibly vengeful and able to harbour a deep hatred of people who have earned his anger. He is especially vindictive towards anyone who has caused harm to people he cares about. Years after Janet was raped by Arthur Yates, Alistair found him and inflicted horrific torture upon him and had him humiliated in revenge. Alistair has also displayed sadistic traits, taking enjoyment and satisfaction in the pain and misery he visited upon his victims. He could be seen reveling in the agony Craig Peterson and Charles Young suffered at Alistair's hands.

Despite his cruelty, he is capable of showing mercy, compassion and kindness to others. Upon discovering people who were abused or mistreated, he would often assist them and even offer a place in the Undead ranks if they wished. He also took a special interest in Ryan Walters and Ikon during and after the War, wanting to protect Ryan and help Ikon grow. He also held lingering affection for Riley, believing he had died but was surprised and devastated when he found Riley alive and thought of him as a monster. This affection continued to have a prolonged effect on Alistair showing that Alistair couldn't completely move on from Ryan as he had and became dangerously jealous of Tom Harding, his 'replacement,' and sought to harm him and even attempted to kill him on more than one occasion. As he found himself returning to some semblance of the life he once had, Alistair became more willing to go out of his way to protect others and displaying kindness. In many cases, this was a facade simply to advance his agendas instead of any genuine kindness or concern to strangers.

He views the undead largely as an extended family, seeking to protect them if he can. Unlike the Supreme King and others in the hierarchy, he doesn't believe that the mindless undead are just slaves that can be disposed of. He actively prepared plans to preserve his forces in battle even though he had a significant numerical advantage compared to the humans as he didn't believe they should be used as fodder and also, if they didn't develop appropriate tactics, their forces would deplete rapidly. His views on the undead that retained their minds was more diverse during the War. He prized those who had greater magical potential but, above all else, had the intellect to learn, adapt and prepare their own plans. Those that exceeded his expectations or showed an uncanny ability survive were elevated and some became the first Reapers, who became devoted to Alistair. Those that he found lacked any ability to properly think and examine the reality around them earned his contempt and even hostility if Alistair's plans failed because of the incompetence of others. He was willing to punish and even execute other Undead that were irresponsible and reckless, despite the magical potential they may have or their station in the undead ranks.

His most prominent trait is his sense of self preservation, willing to go to extraordinary lengths to ensure his survival. As the War progressed, he believed that the Supreme King would eventually make an enemy out of the Archytes once humanity had been removed. Being one of the few that saw this likelihood, and unwilling to let this become a possibility, he spent many months in formulating a plan to save himself and the other undead from their master. When a cure for undeath was found, he viewed it as the means for his enemies to use against him, displaying a certain level of paranoia. Despite Jordan's insistence that it would be used only for any undead that want it and the resources he had used to create it, Alistair still destroyed the laboratory housing the cure and killed involved in the project fully knowing that, if Jordan found out, he would be devastated and furious. Before this occurred, his worst fears were realised when a prototype of the cure was used to temporarily bring him to life only to experience death once again.

Alistair is also very secretive, unwilling to divulge a number of his secrets and actions to even his family and close friends in order to manipulate or hide certain facts that he didn't wished discovered. He kept numerous plans to himself rather than share them with trusted friends and allies unless he deemed it necessary. Following a decision by the Archyte Council to lock access to The Source, Alistair 'neglected' to inform them that he had already created another entrance at the time they sealed The Source away in case his existence was threatened. He also developed some weapons with magical properties that were to be used against the humans. However, Alistair was not foolish and placed safeguards in case he was ever compromised.

Being abandoned by both Hunter and Jordan humbled Alistair significantly. Their responses to his increasingly dark actions made him question his morality and left him believing that he had become a monster, an admission he eventually made to both and admitted he felt lost. After being freed from the Supreme King's will a second time, he no longer sought power or control over people but instead genuinely felt guilty for causing more death and destruction (particularly remorseful over Anna's death) and wanted a better, happier life.

Powers and Abilities
Upon becoming an Archyte, Alistair initially struggled with the concept of magic. Jordan Black, the first Archyte, tutored Alistair in how to use magic. Once he realised how to bring it out and shape it to his wishes, he improved in leaps and bounds. Even the Supreme King noted his magical potential upon first confronting him while still as a human when having no access to any magical abilities, first hinting at his level of power. His knowledge of magic quickly became the most extensive of anyone alive or undead, leading to other Archytes to seek his advice and occasional assistance. With his astonishing degree of power, he inspired fear and respect from those around him. He was even able to hold off Ewan Rogers, who was empowered by Emily Poole and Antonio Pilato, for a time.

While being slave of the Supreme King, his powers were noted to be in a diminished state and did not have access to his full potential. It was speculated that this was due to the Supreme King having to maintain constant control over him and guide his actions. Nonetheless, he was still a powerful adversary against the free undead and humans and was listed as a threat to be avoided at all costs.

With the deaths of both Jordan and the Supreme King, Alistair is undisputedly the most powerful person in the world.


 * Magical Mastery - Alistair has been able to wield a significant amount of magical energies and has channeled these energies into either blasts or beams that can harm or destroy. The more he channels, the more devastating the effects are. He is also capable of manipulating and redirecting magical energies generated by other practitioners.
 * Immortality - Being undead, Alistair is immune from standard human ailments such as disease, ageing and sickness and has the potential to live forever. In addition, Alistair possesses an anchor which allows him to remain earthbound provided that it remains in existence.
 * Advanced Telekinesis - As an Archyte, Alistair has proven to be incredibly efficient with the skill of telekinesis by moving objects with his mind. He has shown to be able telekinetically pin, throw, and trap humans and undead effortlessly. He has been able to lift or move large objects with minimal difficulty. Furthermore, he has demonstrated the ability to harm humans and undead by crushing them externally or even internally and even make them or objects be obliterated.
 * Telepathy - Through much practice, Alistair developed a certain degree of success in piercing someone's mind and being able to obtain information, having greater success in being able to 'listen' to surface thoughts. However, this ability is limited partly due to the strength of the individual's mind. If an individual possesses a strong enough will, they will be able to block Alistair completely. He is also able to lock or unlock the minds of other undead. Alistair also has the power to block memories of other undead, however blocking someone's memories will not last as the mind fights back and is able to remove the block. This was shown was Alistair blocked Ryan's memories just as the end of the war was near, but Ryan was slowly able to regain pieces of his memories. He also possesses a psychic link with the undead and the Supreme King.
 * Elemental Mastery - Alistair is extremely proficient with the manipulation of the different elements of the world, in particular fire. He has been able to create balls of fire or even large infernos in a short amount of time. Furthermore, although being able to quickly generate slight gusts of wind, he is capable of forming tornadoes that are estimated to rank between F1 and F2 of the Fujita Scale. His greatest achievement was being able to create a storm which ravaged the land after much effort. He can also detect primal energies in the earth, such as in crystals or certain rocks.
 * Super Strength - As an undead, Alistair has an increased level of strength to a greater degree than that of a human. He has been able to lift humans and heavy objects with minimal difficulty or break the neck of a person. However, by even his own admission, his simultaneously uses telekinesis to give the appearance of greater strength than what he actually possesses.
 * Super Endurance - He has been able to withstand damage and pain that would significantly incapacitate a human due to being undead. However, he is just as susceptible to injury as a human would be.
 * Super Stamina - Due to being undead, Alistair does not require any sustenance, air and does not tire as his magic fuels him. He has the potential to remain active indefinitely.
 * Dueling - Alistair is an incredibly skilled duelist who was able to overcome combatants such as Travis Walter, Kyle Salders, Craig Peterson and Erica McMillan and defeated them all.  However, it should be noted that they did not possess any magical abilities that gave them an advantage in their fights. He has been able to effectively use his combat skills along with his magic to defeat many of his foes. Alistair has also proven to hold his own against many of his fellow Archytes, utilising his skills of wielding his staff and magical power. Although he has been beaten by other Archytes with just weaponry, Alistair is able defeat nearly any foe with his magic.
 * Teleportation - Alistair is a master of teleporting, being able to disappear and reappear instantly. He has been able to use this to great effect during combat situations, such as teleporting around Travis Walter to taunt him as well as systematically eliminating a small battalion in a short amount of time. However, he must be able to visualise where he is going before teleporting.
 * Apporting - Being adept at magic, Alistair has been able to will objects from one location to another. However, he must know exactly where that object is otherwise he cannot transport it. The exception this rule is his staff, as Alistair is able to sense wherever his staff has gone.
 * Necromancy - Alistair has proven to be incredibly adept at raising the dead into undeath and managed to reanimate an entire cemetery in a short time and used the reanimated bodies to attack the city of Melbourne. He eventually learned how to carefully control the undead on a micro scale, using them to assault humanity. He has also shown to be able to force the actions of other undead or even wrest control of a large number of undead from others with minimal ease.
 * Crafting - Part of being an Archyte is to choose a weapon that is tied to them. Alistair managed to create and shape a staff out of various minerals with his magic. He also was able to create the Darklight Blade that was used to defeat the Supreme King with the assistance of the other rebellious Archytes.
 * Regeneration - Having a large amount of magic, Alistair's body will naturally recover from any wound or injury he has suffered. Alistair can increase how quickly he can heal by channeling magic. The only wound that cannot be healed is the one he received from the Supreme King. It has been left as a permanent scar.
 * Healing - Alistair has shown to have a limited amount of healing abilities, able to heal other undead of their wounds. These abilities do not extend to humans.
 * Alistair's Staff - Originally a staff that he used to channel his magic through, Alistair managed to empower his staff by using a rock from the Source that allowed him to utilise a greater amount of magical energies than ordinary. In addition, the staff has been proven to be indestructible and linked to Alistair in a way that no one has been able to replicate. The staff has been shown to teleport itself when Alistair was forced into submission by the Supreme King and acted as a lock for some of Alistair's secret weapons.
 * Leadership Skills - Alistair has been described as a master of strategy and led the undead to many victories. During the war, he would often provide assistance to his commanders or even step in for them if he believed them to be incompetent. It was his tactical genius that aided his rise to power within the undead ranks and secured his place next to the Supreme King. Perhaps one of the greatest examples was his victory over Fort Tyson, completely devastating the human resistance in a short amount of time. He would often adopt different strategies than other commanders who would often resort to trying to overwhelm their enemies with sheer numbers.

Weaknesses
As one of the first Archytes and possessing a strong affinity with magic, Alistair is one of the most powerful beings on earth. But despite his level of power, he does share a number of weaknesses that are common to other undead.
 * Destruction - Although powerful, his body is still susceptible to harm like an ordinary human. If Alistair's body is damaged in a significant way, the magic that keeps him animated will seep out leaving him weakened until he is able to heal. He is also capable of being incapacitated should he receive an injury that would normally kill a human (e.g. severe damage to the chest, head trauma, etc) but will revive given time. His body could also be destroyed through means such as explosions or a level of damage that he wouldn't be able to repair from, which would leave his soul disembodied and waiting until he could restore himself.
 * Loss of Magic - As he is undead and reanimated through the use of magic, he would be unable to exist without magic. After the death of the Supreme King, he initially found that he had no magical abilities and was cut off from the source of magic like every other undead. Over time, he found his body starting to fail as the magic started to dissipate.
 * Upper Level Undead - Powerful undead are able to harm and destroy Alistair. Although his skill and strength make him incredibly strong, he is not omnipotent and can be overpowered.
 * Soul Anchor Destruction - Alistair's anchor is, while heavily empowered, still susceptible to being destroyed. While the damage or evisceration of it won't cause any lasting harm to him, it will scar the soul and he is unable to create another for an unspecified period of time. Furthermore, it risks the chance of being unable to remain earthbound should his body also be destroyed.

Parents
Jack and Natalie Salders fostered a loving and caring atmosphere for their youngest child. They would both encourage him in anything he tried to do or accomplish.

Being the youngest, he was given slightly different treatment by his parents. Jack quite frequently used to bend Alistair's responsibilities or obligations while Natalie would sometimes give him additional pocket money, much to the ire of Kyle and Janet.

Losing his father at a young age had a profound effect on Alistair. For some time, Alistair wasn't able to accept Jack's death and would lash out angrily at anyone that raised the subject. While he managed to move on, Alistair harboured a deep seated fear of death which impacted on his actions both during and after the War of the Dead in seeking to ensure his own survival by employing dangerous or destructive means.

Alistair's feelings towards Jack became known to the Supreme King who resurrected Jack and forced Alistair to murder him multiple times until Jack could no longer be restored. Although Alistair despaired at his predicament, Jack forgave his son after each time he was slain. This further traumatised Alistair who began to plot against the Supreme King in secret in retribution.

Following the outbreak of the War, he often wondered if Natalie, along with Kyle and Janet, were alive but eventually pushed these thoughts away to focus on the conflict. When he found out that his family was still alive, he was secretly jubilant and redoubled his efforts in defeating the Supreme King.

After the War, his relationship with Natalie suffered once she knew his complicity in nearly wiping out humanity. They both found themselves uncomfortable in each other's presence. Though they both loved each other, they were never as close as they were previously. While they both tried to improve their relationship, it would fail each time as Natalie couldn't truly forgive Alistair for his past actions, which Alistair knew.

Upon Ewan Rogers murdering Natalie, Alistair became colder and behaved poorly at her funeral which Kyle attacked him for. Eventually Alistair reconciled his feelings for her and promised to be a better person in her honour, however he still committed heinous acts to satisfy personal goals.

At his lowest after being abandoned by Hunter and Jordan, Alistair admitted to Ikon that he felt he was a terrible son and didn't try to reconnect with Natalie after the War. Wishing that he if could have one minute with her to make amends, Alistair proved that he did love and care for Natalie.

Possessions

 * Staff - Originally a staff that he used to channel his magic through, Alistair managed to empower his staff by placing a rock derived from the Source into it that allowed him to utilise a greater amount of magical energies than ordinary. In addition, the staff has been proven to be indestructible and linked to Alistair in a way that no one has been able to replicate. The staff has been shown to teleport itself when Alistair was forced into submission by the Supreme King and acts as a lock for some of Alistair's secret weapons.
 * Soul Anchors - Like all Archytes, Alistair maintains the use of a Soul Anchor that keeps his soul tethered to the earth should his body be destroyed. Unlike the other Archytes, Alistair managed to create two Anchors and kept the existence of one a secret.
 * Twin blades - Following his capture by the Supreme King and loss of his staff, he used two short swords when engaging in combat. Though strengthened to a certain degree, they lacked the power that his staff has. At the climax of the Second War, they were unable to stand against the combined attacked of several Archytes and were obliterated.