A Fate Inked in Blood

In the tunnels of the Path to Helheim, Bjorn explains that the draug were once a jarl and his warriors who stole treasure from the sacred temple of Fjalltindr. As punishment, divine forces struck them down and cursed them to guard the tunnels eternally. All others who attempted to find the treasure in the tunnels became draug as well. The mountain seems to awaken as Freya and Bjorn come upon a hoard of gold, silver, gems, and other treasure. They are attacked by skeletal figures: the undead. The draug have retained their intelligence and the ability to cooperate in a strategic attack, and the ensuing fight is fierce. Freya calls on Hlin’s shield and fends off the attacks, but her sword goes right through the draug like air. Remembering that “[n]o weapon forged by mortal hands can harm them” (159), she realizes that only Bjorn can kill them because his fire axe is a weapon of the gods. A draug nearly chokes Freya to death, but Bjorn reaches her and kills it just in time. Working together, Freya and Bjorn finish off the rest of the draug, watching them explode into ash as they die.