The following day, Ersabet and I received our first contract for a monster hunt. Rumors were circulating about wandering draugr in one of the rarely used northern passes through the mountains.

  Our mission was to investigate this rumor and, if confirmed true, dispatch the undead. If there were draugr, it meant there was a tomb nearby, and so we would search for and seal that tomb to prevent more draugr from wandering around where they didn't belong.

  It was midday now, and we were about a mile away from the base of the mountains. We would travel north another ten miles today, make camp, and then search for the mountain pass the following day.

  I was joined on this hunt by Ersabet, Minna, and one of Minna's friends, Harl. That wasn't all, though. Djadja and the Kurskin Ersabet defeated in her final fight, Surach, insisted on sharing this contract. They claimed they were going to support us on our first hunt, but the real reason was obvious. I didn't know when they would make their move, but it was clear as day that they would. Ersabet was their target, and I doubted they cared about collateral damage.

  Ersabet and I had talked, and we were both expecting violence. All we could do was stay vigilant.

  I spent most of our hike speaking with Minna and Harl. I was already fond of Minna, but Harl was just as likable. He was the practical sort and smarter than you'd think. Plus, he knew how to take a joke, a trait some of my other travel companions lacked.

  As we continued our long hike to wherever it was we were going to camp, I thought it was a good time to learn more about what we were up against.

  "What can you tell me about draugr?" I asked Minna.

  "They are the undead," she said. "Draugr typically stay within their tomb to guard against any would-be grave robbers. They do not often leave their tombs, and I haven't the faintest guess as to why they would."

  "Maybe whoever reported the rumor to Master Roan got it wrong," I said. "If they don't leave their burial grounds, it seems unlikely we're hunting for an actual draugr. Maybe it's a different type of monster."

  "I've thought the same. But, there's only one way for us to find out."

  "Just in case it is a real draugr, how does one kill it?" I asked.

  "You must decapitate it and then burn the body." Minna jabbed a fist at my side. "I hope you can read because you have much studying to do if you're this clueless. I have a bestiary back in Danver. You can borrow it when we get back."

  I rubbed my side. "Ouch. And thank you."

  We continued walking and chatting for hours. Finally, when the sun fell low in the sky, I decided we had walked enough for one day. There was a shallow pond about fifty yards away and plenty of nearby tree cover. It was a good spot, and I confirmed with Val that we were within five miles of the mountain pass. We could get a good night's rest and find it easily in the morning.

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  "How about we camp here?" I said in a loud voice for all to hear.

  "Sounds good to me," Minna said.

  "Seconded," Ersabet said.

  "Who put you in charge?" Surach said, speaking to me for the first time since this hike began half a day ago.

  I removed the backpack I had been given for this trip and laid it on the ground. It felt good to have that weight off, and I stretched and rubbed at my shoulders. "This is a perfect place to camp. And as far as who's in charge, I'd say we're all equals here."

  From the corner of my eye, I saw Minna and Harl flinch. Ersabet was as calm as ever.

  Djadja laughed out loud, but Surach hissed. "We are far from equal," he said. “I am a Kurskin. To you, I may as well be a god."

  Talk about an overinflated ego. Now, it was my turn to laugh. "There ain't nothing godly about your sour ass, Surach."

  He stalked forward, furious at my insult. Ersabet stepped before me and stood casually with her hands on her hips.

  It annoyed me that she intervened. I was intentionally antagonizing him.

  "Get out of the way, Dalari," Surach said in a low, raspy voice.

  "Are you going to attack my companion?" she said.

  "Just going to teach him to respect his betters."

  "Ah," Ersabet said. "Like the lesson I taught you in our fight yesterday."

  Surach's eyes flashed with rage.

  "Since that fight established that I am your better and you believe the strongest should be in charge," she said. "I will humbly accept the duty to lead this party."

  "Careful, Dalari."

  Ersabet cocked her head. "Be careful of what? It's against our order to cause unsanctioned harm to another Hunter. Surely, someone with your integrity would respect that." She gave him a patronizing smile and turned around. "Everyone, let's rest here for the night."

  I saw it coming too late to alert her. Surach spun around, sending a powerful tail sweep into Ersabet's legs. It connected just as I yelled out. Her legs flew out from underneath her, and she fell sideways, hitting the ground hard at an awkward angle.

  Without thinking, I stepped toward Surach, activated Devastating Strike, and punched him in the side of the head as hard as possible.

  Pain erupted from my right hand as I connected with his scaled skin. He fell to the ground, stunned by the unexpectedly powerful blow.

  I glanced at Ersabet. She was regaining her feet, but I could tell she was still disoriented by the attack.

  From the corner of my eye, I saw movement. Djadja was charging at me, sword drawn.

  I reached for my weapon, but there wasn’t enough time to draw it before Djadja attacked. He sliced down at a forty-five-degree angle, and I leaped to the side, just barely dodging the tip of the blade.

  I ran a few more steps to gain some distance and give myself time to pull out my sword. Before I could, the ground underneath Djadja trembled, and he collapsed into the earth as if swallowed by quicksand.

  Ersabet ended the spell, trapping him up to his belly in the hard-packed earth.

  And then I was hit by a train.

  Well, it wasn't actually a train, but it felt like one as Surach tackled me from the side and landed atop me.

  "You're going to die for that," he hissed at me.

  If I wanted to reply, I wouldn't have been able to as the breath had been thoroughly knocked out of me.

  I tried and failed to gasp for air as his scaled fist crashed into my face. My vision blurred, and my thoughts scattered from the blow.

  I waited helplessly for the next blow, but it never came. Surach yelled a curse and rolled off me.

  Through my busted vision, I saw two figures on top of him. Minna and Harl had joined the fight, but they were no match for Surach, who thrashed on the ground and threw the pair off of him.

  Surach stood back up and faced me, but didn’t notice the blue shadow that appeared behind him. My vision was still too fuzzy to see what was happening, but he yelped and fell to his knees.

  The next moment, Ersabet had him in a chokehold. He thrashed and cursed but couldn’t break from Ersabet’s grip. Slowly, the fight left him, and his body went limp.

  I took a cue from Surach and closed my eyes. A little nap was just what the doctor ordered.