Undead

A being that isn't fully dead but certainly not alive either. It exists between the states of life and death, typically after a living creature has passed away and had some remnant of its being continue in something of a second life. The undead are a common sight in the fantasy and horror genres and Halloween Specials, but they aren't restrained to those two mediums. Many beings can be considered undead, and the list below describes some of them.

The way an undead being comes to be has more than one explanation. In many franchises, this is unexplained and irrelevant to the main storyline. Some like the zombie and vampire arise from spread of preexisting creatures. A Zombie Apocalypse is an excellent way to spawn thousands of zombies, as well as the downfall of mankind. Ghosts can originate from the regrets, suffering, incomplete life, or even malice of those who have passed.

Angel
What might not be considered undead by some is the angel. When people who have led righteous lives die, they may be transported to Heaven to live as these. Angels can return to the realm of the living where they can interact with others who have yet to meet the same fate. Angels are imagined as benevolent beings donned in white robes, golden halos over their heads, large, white, feathery wings, and commonly blonde hair. They're calm in tone when speaking and commonly use an intelligent and formal speech pattern.

Ghost
A ghost is the detached soul of a once-living being. They lack a corporeal form and are able to phase through physical matter. A downside to this may be the inability to interact with anything physical outside of haunting it. Taking advantage of their non-physical bodies, ghosts have the unique power to haunt objects by placing themselves in those objects and control their movements. If a living creature is haunted, it is instead referred to as possession. A possessed being is unable to control itself as the ghost within now owns its body. Some ghosts have the ability to warp their faces into grotesque appearances to frighten others. What may terrify the living more is that ghosts are often totally immune to physical attacks, meaning fighting a ghost with fists or weapons is futile. However, ghosts can sometimes be defeated by vacuums that they oddly cannot phase through after being captured. A place that is believed to be haunted — most often a house, mansion, or forest — is said to be home to ghosts and made dangerous for the living. These places may have a history of misery, such as being the site of a person or many people's demise. Ghosts differ in appearance, from resembling their former bodies to being legless blanket sheets with wide, black eyes.

Mummy
Mummies are rare, topical undead beings that are only seen in Egypt, Egypt-inspired areas, and museums. They emerge from their sarcophagi and may chase their enemies with their arms hung out in front of them like zombies. Unlike zombies, mummies are periodically depicted being capable of quickly walking or even full running.

Skeleton
The free-moving bones of beings who have passed, skeletons are a popular breed of undead along with ghosts and zombies. Skeletons can fall apart and often pull themselves together, an ability useful for dealing with many types of incoming attacks. On top of this, they are sometimes depicted with a resistance to fire. Thanks to bones, these boys aren't easy to draw. In lighthearted situations, skeletons can play their bones like xylophones or other musical instruments to produce music.

Vampire
Vampires are a kind of undead creature that sucks on the blood of the living to feed. They do this using their two sharp fangs that might protrude from their mouths even when closed. These parasitic monsters make their homes in dark dwellings to avoid the light, especially sunlight, which may burn their skin on contact. Vampires have other weaknesses such as garlic, the Christian cross, or holy water that a traveler would be glad to have on them. The typical vampire is depicted as a well-dressed male with short, black hair, a black-and-red cape (if not all black), and pale skin, likely resulting from the lack of sunlight. If a person is bitten by a vampire, there is a chance they become one as well. A vampire bite leaves two distinct bloodless marks on the area of impact, which is traditionally the neck. Vampires also have the ability to transform into bats if injured or when traveling. To trick the living, some vampires disguise themselves as living people. A telltale sign of a disguised vampire is the inability to cast a shadow or create a reflection. This might also extend to not appearing in photographs or on videos.

Zombie
Among the most basic and well-known undead is the zombie. It comes in the form of a rotting corpse capable of walking around on its own after a person's death. Undead bodies of animals also exist, but they're less seen than those who came from human or humanoid bodies. Zombies are usually described as slow-walking and stupid creatures, which might be why they hunt human brains to feast on. These walking corpses are mainly imagined as having sickly, (pale) green skin and ragged clothes, possibly beaten by time after their owners' deaths, and jaws hanging by threads of skin from their mouths. If their bodies are especially decomposed, their bones may be visible and feeding maggots might wriggle about in and on them. Like skeletons, zombies can likely piece themselves together after their parts have fallen from the main body. A Zombie Apocalypse is a catastrophic event in which zombies have taken over (a part of) society and are a widespread threat to the living. If someone is bitten by a zombie, they will likely turn into one themselves. Zombies can burrow through the ground out of their graves or break out of their coffins. This is an ability that leads some concerned towns and cities to cover their death boxes in cement to be Super Mega Ultra Sure no zombies can bust out of their subterranean prisons.