Hallik brushed his hair back from his eyes, breathing steadily as he led the rest of the students to the well near the center of the courtyard, Castle Vrodr looming beside them. What looked like tiny, rounded bushes, shimmied away from him and the others. In truth, they were little creatures called bushnings that aided in cultivating the castle gardens. Despite trying, he’d never been able to figure out what they looked like. Whenever he’d pick one of them up, they’d pop into their bushlike shell.

Lind stood with arms folded across his broad chest, smiling at the students as they each shuffled toward the well, breathing heavily.

Elowyn’s attention was turned away from them, instead looking up at the Grimnir banner as she often did. She was always thinking, that one. He could never guess what she was always pondering about.

Hallik had taken the jog easy. At first, during their run, he pressed Elowyn from behind, knowing she’d run even harder just to lose him. Once she took off at a faster pace, he slunk back until the rest caught up with him. His fellow students were a strong bunch. The hardiest youth of Dalstava. Others their age would be following their professions by now, usually following in their parents’ footsteps, but not for most of the students of Vrodr, though there were a few of them whose parents were also Grimnir.

He reached the well and wheeled up a bucket of water. Several cups were already laid out, awaiting the students’ return. He poured water into the cups as others held them out, nodding to his classmates in turn.

“I can’t wait until I have my wings and don’t need to run anymore,” Svea said, heaving a breath as Hallik filled her cup. Her shoulders, both marked with dark, coiling tattoos, sagged. Her thick brown hair was coiled into a braid around the top of her head and pinned into place.

Hallik huffed a laugh. “You realize flying takes considerable exertion as well, right?”

“At least it’s faster.” Her light gray eyes blinked at him lazily before she nodded her thanks and withdrew with her cup.

Hallik smirked and helped everyone else before they shuffled toward Lind as he led the way into the castle.

After successfully handing them off, Arenda jumped into the air, massive feathered wings carrying her to an upper tower where the Valtyra made their post.

“You always make yourself to be a leader,” Elowyn said, nudging Hallik with a knuckle as she fell in beside him at the rear of the class.

She was teasing him about his tendency to serve out the water or hang back during the runs. “Grimnirs need captains, do they not?” Hallik said.

Elowyn laughed. “Ambitious.”

“There’s nothing wrong with some ambition. You too are ambitious. It’s one of the reasons we make a good friendship.” He dropped his wooden sword in a pile beside the door to the castle. A couple of the castle staff would take care of them from there.

“Who says we’re friends?” she said, lowering her eyebrows at him.

Hallik shook his head and poked her with his elbow. “I do. Which means there’s no way out of it, I’m afraid. Unless you start besting me in combat, then we may need to become rivals.”

Svea looked back at them over her shoulder. “I wouldn’t mind being your rival if it meant besting you at swordplay, Hal.” Elowyn nodded to Svea.

Hallik balked. “You would trade friendship for dominance?”

“Just your friendship, Hal,” Svea said, smiling at Elowyn. “Rivalries are more fun anyway.”

Hallik grunted as they went through the castle’s wide stone hallway. Nooks were heavily decorated relics from years past. Sconces burned with heatless, magical light, captured within upturned, hollowed goat horns. Massive, wooden beams stretched across the top of the ceiling. The hallway ended at a large atrium that stretched three floors tall, but instead, they entered a room to the side, lined with windows that filled the room with warm light.

Dusty tombs filled a bookshelf on one side of the room, and dark green wallpaper covered the walls. The students shuffled into three long benches that faced the windowed side of the room where Lind went and stood beside a small podium.

This class was what Hallik considered the most difficult part of becoming a Grimnir. Using magic had such varied intricacies to understand, and it was more difficult when considering the fact that none of them had any magic yet. Not until they could pass their trial through Vanalf.

Pass or die.

It was no surprise Grimnirs were a fading breed.

Lind smiled at them all through his thick beard until each student was seated.

As difficult as it was to keep his mind sharply attuned to the lessons Lind taught, Hallik knew the information would be invaluable. How else would he know what to do if he were to come across trolls, water sprites, or elves?

Lind’s smile disappeared as he went straight into his lecture. “Today we will learn of draugr.”

“The drowned,” Elowyn murmured from beside Hallik.

Lind nodded to Elowyn slowly. “Yes. The drowned.” He carefully lifted a leather parchment from the lectern before him and held it up for everyone to see. Tattooed into the leather was a crude depiction of a person with boned hands and tattered clothing, the face sunken and skeletal.

Did the air seem colder? Hallik brushed his hands across the skin of his arms. A quick glance at the other students showed that they too began to fold their arms and cross their legs.

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Lind was a Vitugr. Could he have altered the coolness in the air to draw attention to his lecture?

“Many years ago, long before Avskild was formed, there were two brothers, Glemor and Reti. Their father was a great warrior in possession of many treasures, and both his sons were jealous of his wealth. The three of them went sailing with their families to find a new land for themselves. The first night at sea, a strong storm created mountainous waves. Water sloshed into the raft, and everyone struggled to keep the boat afloat. Reti, who stood at the back of the boat with his father, saw it as a terrible chance to rid himself of his father to claim his treasures for himself. He drew his sword and stabbed his father up through the back, piercing the lungs. He pulled the rings from his father’s fingers before shoving him off the boat.

“Glemor saw Reti pushing their father into the sea right as it happened. In his fury, he charged back toward his brother, preparing to avenge his father. But Reti cast a savage blow across his brother’s face with the tip of his blade. Disoriented, he lost his footing as another wave crashed into the boat, and Glemor was swept away with the water, captured by the sea, vengeance pounding in his heart, a yelled curse lost in the roar of the wave.”

Leti’s expression had darkened, an uncommon expression on the face of an otherwise cheery man. “Reti and the rest of them made it safely to a new land. Nobody else had seen Reti’s treachery, so after mourning their losses, they appointed Reti as king, but a darkness hung over them. Often in the mornings, gray clouds hung low the sea, and many said they saw the mast of a black ship hidden among the dark shadows. Days passed. Then weeks. Then months. Some said they could hear Glemor’s voice shouting at them from the ocean, or whispering to them in the wind, always demanding vengeance, but for what, they knew not.

“All except Reti. The voice haunted him even more than the others. So early one morning, he took his sword and strode onto the beach till the waves were lapping at his knees. ‘Face me,’ he cried out to the ocean, slashing his sword across the water.”

Lind slapped the parchment onto the lectern and stepped closer to the students, eyes scanning across them before he continued. “Then, from out of the water, a desiccated figure emerged and stood before Reti, a familiar voice echoing in the air like a distant storm from the sea.

“It was Reti’s brother. Glemor.”

“The first draugr,” Elowyn whispered, her voice barely discernible.

Lind’s head nodded ever-so-slightly. “The first draugr.” He took a deep breath. “Overcome with terror and madness, Reti was unable to defend himself against Glemor. He was dragged out to sea, disappearing from the eyes of the others who watched from the shore. Vengeance was dealt. A short while later, the dark clouds lifted and the voices faded from haunting the young village.”

Hallik stroked his chin as he pondered the significance of the tale. “Why does this matter now?” he dared ask. “Does a draugr only seek vengeance if wronged in life?”

Lind nodded with a grunt. “Hallik poses a good question. The story of Reti and Glemor does not provide all the insight, but there have been many other draugr. They do not always seek after vengeance alone. Sometimes hatred. Sometimes simply an unwillingness to die. It is important to know that they are born of evil. Evil deeds. Evil thoughts. As future Grimnirs and defenders of Dalstava, you should know how to defeat them.”

“They do not feel pain or suffer from wounds,” Elowyn said.

“Yes,” Lind said. “And they carry with them the skill they had in life, so warriors are more competent in battle. Then they may also have whatever dark magic helped form their creation. It has a tendency to tug at the mind and drive people toward madness when haunted by a draugr or when trespassing in their territory.”

“Have we had draugr here on Avskild?” asked Trygge, his hazel eyes wide.

“Infrequently, yes,” Lind answered. “I have destroyed one myself that haunted the burial grounds, though I was able to use fire magic, making it easy work. Most of you will not have the same advantage.”

“So how do we kill them?” Trygge asked.

“Again,” Svea added with a smirk.

Lind’s smile returned. “Fire is good. Swords and axes can still sever their limbs, but whatever dark curse keeps them alive can be broken by separating their heart from their brain.”

“Decapitation,” Svea stated, her smirk widening to reveal her teeth.

“Indeed,” Lind said, though he held up a hand. “But it should be noted that more than flesh holds them together. The curse makes them hardier than you would think, so severing the head can potentially be more difficult. Sometimes piercing to the heart or brain can work, but it is not a guarantee. Fire ignores their curse and burns them straight through.”

Fire. Hallik rubbed his chin. Another good reason to become a Vitugr, not that he’d be able to choose what type of Grimnir he’d become. At least kindling was already a staple supply of his.

But there was something about today’s lesson—something about Lind—that left Hallik sitting at the edge of the bench. Lind liked to add dramatic flair to his stories since it was effective at helping the young students remain apt, and it certainly helped Hallik who might otherwise fall asleep, but there was still something that made Hallik almost uncomfortable. That jovial light in Lind’s eyes had been gone.

As soon as the class was over, Hallik lingered after, leaving parting words with his fellow students.

“Are you coming tonight?” Elowyn asked before leaving. Hallik often visited her home at the edge of the forest to eat dinner with her and her mother, and still frequently stayed the night. It wasn’t the same there though as when he was much younger.

Hallik popped one of his knuckles. “I told Sefrid I’d help them at the beach tonight. I don’t know how long it will take.” He swatted at Sefrid as the smaller boy walked to the door.

“All night,” Sefrid joked, smiling as he attempted to dodge Hallik, but he was too slow. One of his front teeth was chipped in half from when a rope had snapped on their boat, causing a mast support beam to smash into his face. His brown hair was pulled into a loose bun at the back of his head and trimmed short everywhere else.

“I could help,” Elowyn said.

Hallik narrowed his eyes at her but said nothing. It was uncommon of her to offer help in her own free time.

“Excellent,” Sefrid said. “I’ll see you both at the docks later then.” He rushed out the door.

Elowyn’s eyes lingered on Hallik for a brief moment before she too left the room, leaving Hallik alone with Lind.

The mountain of a Grimnir stood beside his lectern, arms folded across his broad chest, eyebrows raised in amusement. “Is there something you wanted to talk about, Hallik?” Lind asked.

Hallik shifted his feet, unsure how to ask the question. “Are you… well?”

“Of course,” Lind said, widening his arms, “but your question is deeper than that, is it not?”

Hallik smiled. Straight to the point, then. “I like to think of myself as perceptive. I’ve seen many lessons from you over the years. Something seemed different about you today when you spoke of the draugr.”

Lind nodded with a sigh. “Perceptive indeed. While there are many creatures or beasts, it’s a rare thing to have some of them born of evil. A draugr is such a creature. Their existence is a direct result of abhorrent deeds. It’s only a shame that such deeds exist, but,” he paused to shrug, “our job is to slay the beast, and I have taught you what would be needed to do that. Darkness exists. Now just see that all your battles are not fought for jealousy, pride, or envy.” Lind gestured to the door. “Have peace.” There was still a hint of sadness in Lind’s eyes, but that seemed to be all he had to say.

“Have peace,” Hallik said and headed for the door. Darkness does exist, he thought to himself, clenching his fist. As a Grimnir, he would fight that darkness.