Malenia, Blade of Miquella, is a name that is etched into the minds of everyone who has reached Elphael, Brace of the Haligtree. Why? Because it is something that Malenia, Blade of Miquella, declares when she kills the Tarnished during the first phase of her boss fight.
Maybe I haven’t emphasized this enough already, so let me put it into a quote for you:
I am Malenia, Blade of Miquella.
-Malenia, Blade of Miquella
Before the DLC: Shadow of the Erdtree, which increased the game’s difficulty, Malenia was the most challenging encounter the Tarnished had to face in the world of Elden Ring. Honestly speaking, she still is the hardest boss fight for me. I don’t know, maybe I am just bad or something.
Malenia is definitely one of the strongest characters walking the Lands Between by the time the Tarnished, our main character, starts their journey. She is also a prominent character lore-wise, being a Shardbearer and Miquella’s twin.
In this article, we are going to explore Malenia’s lore, from her origins and her encounter with a blind swordsman to the Shattering and her eventual fate. You know the drill: get comfy, grab a drink, and enjoy the article!
The Beginning of Malenia’s Lore: Her Origins
Malenia is the child of Marika the Eternal and Radagon of the Golden Order. Due to the peculiar relationship between Marika and Radagon—being two sides of the same being—Malenia is considered as being born of a single god, therefore automatically fated to be an Empyrean.
This is confirmed by the Remembrance of the Rot Goddess, which states:
“Miquella and Malenia are both the children of a single god. As such, they are both Empyreans but suffered afflictions from birth. One was cursed with eternal childhood, and the other harbored rot within.”
Miquella, The Unalloyed—Malenia’s twin—was also an Empyrean and afflicted with eternal childhood, which is not too bad compared to Malenia, whose body was ravaged by the Scarlet Rot.
As the daughter of Marika and Radagon, Malenia exhibited great combat prowess from an early age. This power was later refined as a young Malenia met her new mentor, a legendary blind swordsman.
Malenia’s Mentor: The Legendary Swordsman
Legends speak of a master of the sword garbed in blue, and his curved blade that was patterned after flowing water.
The nameless swordsman described in the description of the Flowing Curved Sword seems to be Malenia’s Mentor. There are some other items that let us reconstruct his story, like the Blue Dancer Charm, that says:
Blade in hand, the swordsman sealed away an ancient god – a god that was Rot itself.
This is indeed a legendary feat, since sealing the Outer God of Rot isn’t something any warrior can do. In my opinion, it is not a coincidence that this swordsman mentored Malenia, who harbored the Scarlet Rot within her. I’d like to think that the swordsman taught her some techniques to slow down the Scarlet Rot from spreading.
Through their training, Malenia became one of the most powerful entities in the Lands Between, as told by the Prosthesis-Wearer Heirloom:
Though born into the accursed rot, when the young girl encountered her mentor and his flowing blade, she gained wings of unparalleled strength.
And her strength saw again a rise in power, after she came into possession of a fragment of the Elden Ring.
Malenia’s Inheritance: The Great Rune
Marika, Goddess of the Golden Order, shattered the Elden Ring after her son Godwyn was murdered during the Night of Black Knives. For more information about this event, I advise you to read this article about the lore of Ranni the Witch.
After the Elden Ring was shattered, Marika’s children and stepchildren inherited parts of it and were named Shardbearers. As Marika’s daughter, Malenia received a shard of the Elden Ring—a Great Rune—which description is quite enigmatic:
Malenia is daughter to Queen Marika and Radagon, and her Great Rune should have been the most sacred of all.
Why should Malenia’s Great Rune have been the most sacred—or important—of all? Miquella, her twin, also received a Great Rune, but it seems it was destined to be less sacred, considering Malenia’s Great Rune description.
This seems to be related to her Empyrean status—a candidate to be the next god of the Golden Order—but because of her Scarlet Rot, probably she could not ascend to godhood.
Or maybe, there was another reason.
The Vow Between Miquella and Malenia
Maybe Malenia thought that someone else was better suited to ascend to godhood. The description for Malenia’s Winged Helm tells us something about it:
Malenia awaited Miquella at the foot of the husk.
“My brother will keep his promise. He possesses the wisdom, the allure, of a god—he is the most fearsome Empyrean of all.”
After the release of the Elden Ring DLC: Shadow of the Erdtree, we now know what Malenia meant with these words. Miquella was planning to ascend to godhood, and Malenia was fully supportive of this.
The ritual to ascend to godhood required a consort, and Miquella asked his stepbrother Radahn to fill the position. Why didn’t Miquella ask Malenia for this role? I believe that as a fellow Empyrean, she couldn’t really be Miquella’s consort. Also, with the Scarlet Rot slowly killing her from within, Malenia could not be at her brother’s side for long.
The promise that Malenia was talking about can be traced back to the words that Miquella shares with Radahn in a memory shown to the Tarnished after the final boss fight of Shadow of the Erdtree, Promised Consort Radahn:
I’m going to become a god.
If we honour our part of the vow,
Promise me you’ll be my consort.I’ll make the world a gentler place.
We don’t know if Radahn accepted Miquella’s request or not. We do know, however, that Malenia and Radahn later fought each other during one of the biggest wars that ravaged the Lands Between: The Shattering.
The Shattering: Malenia against General Radahn
Hear me, Demigods. My children beloved.
Make of thyselves that which ye desire.Be it a Lord.
– Marika the Eternal, Through Melina
Be it a God.
But should ye fail to become aught at all, ye will be forsaken.
Amounting only to sacrifices…
After the Elden Ring was shattered and Marika received a life sentence inside the Erdtree because of it, some of the Shardbearers waged war against each other to fill the empty throne of the Golden Order.
Malenia, accompanied by an army, won many battles during The Shattering, including a battle against fellow Shardbearer Godrick the Grafted. However, the most important battle for both Malenia and the whole Shattering was against Starscourge Radahn in the Caelid Wilds:
The Conqueror of the Stars, General Radahn.
And the Blade of Miquella, Malenia the Severed.These two were the mightiest to remain, and locked horns in combat.
But there would be no victor.And so, we inhabit a fractured world.
Awaiting the arrival of the Elden Lord.
-Ranni the Witch
Malenia managed to stop Radahn by releasing a Scarlet Aeonia, a giant blooming flower made of Scarlet Rot, which nuked the whole Caelid region, transforming it into a wasteland.
Just before releasing the Scarlet Aeonia, Malenia whispered something in Radahn’s ear, and after the release of Shadow of the Erdtree, we finally know what she said:
When Malenia, Blade of Miquella, let the rotflower blossom in Aeonia, Radahn heard a murmur in his ear— “Miquella awaits thee, O promised consort.”
Was that fight already planned? Was Radahn committing some sort of suicide by cop to accomplish Miquella’s ritual? Or was Malenia forcing Radahn against his will? We don’t get to know that, unfortunately.
What we know regarding that part of Malenia’s lore is that in the aftermath of the battle, Radahn got infected with the Scarlet Rot and lost his mind, while Malenia fell into a deep sleep after releasing the Scarlet Aeonia and would have probably died there if not for Cleanrot Knight Finlay—one of Malenia’s soldiers—whose ashes tell us what happened:
Finlay was one of the few survivors of the Battle of Aeonia, who in an unimaginable act of heroism carried the slumbering demigod Malenia all the way back to the Haligtree. She managed the feat alone, fending off all manner of foes along the way.
After being brought to Miquella’s Haligtree, Malenia kept sleeping in Elphael, Brace of the Haligtree, until the Tarnished woke her up.
The Battle Against Malenia: The End of Her Story
I dreamt for so long.
My flesh was dull gold…and my blood, rotted.Corpse after corpse, left in my wake…
As I awaited…his return.…Heed my words.
I am Malenia. Blade of Miquella.
And I have never known defeat.
Yeah, there you have her title once again. No need to thank me.
Malenia slept while waiting for Miquella’s return as a god. That moment never came for several reasons, including Miquella getting kidnapped by Mohg, Lord of Blood.
In her slumber, she also infected the Haligtree with Scarlet Rot, even though the Haligtree was fated to die anyway since Miquella was removed from its core.
After the Tarnished reaches Elphael, they are perceived by Malenia as a threat to her brother’s vision. They immediately engage in battle. Facing a first defeat, Malenia unleashes her Scarlet Aeonia, gaining wings made of Scarlet Rot, and continues the fight against the Tarnished.
Defeated a second time, Malenia dies. Her last words are for her brother, her life ultimately dedicated entirely to him.
Conclusion
I wish I had a mimic tear. That would have made the boss fight so much easier the first run… well, too late!
I really hope that you enjoyed this article about Malenia’s lore. Born an Empyrean, she helped her twin brother Miquella along the way and ultimately died protecting his vision. A life devoted to family, indeed.
I hoped to have some kind of cameo from Malenia in Shadow of the Erdtree, but at least we get some more insight into her lore, like what she told Radahn as well as the whole ordeal with Miquella’s vow. Better than nothing!
But I’ve kept you reading long enough! I wish you a great day, and I’ll see you in the next article!
