The movement was quiet and quick, and almost before Alex realized what was happening, the nagas was closing in on him. He spun around, lifting his staff as he turned. Without waiting to get a clear view of his enemy, he cast a freezing spell and called out for his friends to join him.

The freezing spell caught the tail of the nagas, immobilizing the last third of the giant snake. Unfortunately, its front two-thirds was still very mobile, and the spell had infuriated the nagas. It had expected easy prey, but now it had to face six warriors and a wizard.

The nagas lunged toward Alex, and he dove left to avoid being caught in its massive jaws.

Alex rolled quickly to his feet, his hand frozen halfway to his sword. For a moment he stood, undecided about what to do. He could cast another spell using his staff, or he could draw his magic sword and attempt to fight the nagas physically.

As he debated what to do next, he heard the sound of Arconn’s bow and Thrain’s crossbow. Arconn’s arrow hit the nagas squarely in the body, but it broke on the thick scales of the serpent. Thrain’s bolt, however, sank deep into the nagas’s body just behind its head.

The nagas screamed in pain and rage. Rising up, it turned away from Alex, angling toward Thrain. Thrain was too busy reloading his crossbow instead of paying attention to the nagas and was unaware of the danger.

Alex launched himself toward his friend, knocking Thrain away just as the nagas’s head struck the ground where Thrain had been standing. Alex rolled away from his friend, turning to see what the serpent would do next. Raising his staff, he prepared to cast another spell, but the nagas was too quick for him. Its massive head shot forward, missing Alex but striking his staff instead. The staff shuddered in Alex’s grasp, and he was thrown backward, slightly dazed.

By the time Alex was back on his feet, the nagas was closing in on him. Nellus and Barnabus were staggering to their feet, having dodged the attack. Arconn and Kat were firing arrows, trying to find some soft spot on the monster where their arrows would do some good. There was a loud twang and the nagas rose up once more, screaming for a second time. Thrain had managed to fire a second bolt, this one striking the nagas in the eye.

Alex didn’t wait to cast a spell; instead he drew his sword and ran forward. The reckless feeling he had experienced when he faced Bane returned once more, but now it was directed toward this snake that dared to attack him. The nagas’s head was ten feet in the air, so Alex swung his sword at the massive body in front of him and felt his blow slice through the scaled armor of his enemy, cutting the body almost in half.

“Quickly!” Alex heard Thrang shout from behind him.

The head of the nagas dropped toward the ground, unable to lift its broken body.

Thrang charged with his ax, striking the head of the serpent as it tried desperately to crawl away. The nagas jerked wildly, and Thrang was thrown back. Alex ran to the head as well, lifting his sword for a final blow. The nagas wriggled madly on the ground, trying to twist its body over its head for protection, but its frozen tail made that impossible. Alex brought his sword down with all the strength he had.

For a moment the nagas continued to move, but Alex knew that it was already dead. The reckless feeling was slipping away from him, but he realized how close it had come to controlling him completely.

Barnabus and Nellus put their weapons away and helped Thrang to his feet, commenting on his bold attack. Alex smiled at Thrain, who looked pale and afraid but determined to stand his ground.

“More dangerous than a dragon,” Thrang said, retrieving his ax from the severed head of the nagas.

“Not as bad as that,” said Arconn.

“It moved faster than I thought it would,” said Alex.

“Lucky you were able to partially freeze it,” Thrang said, wiping his ax on the grass.

“You . . . you saved me,” said Thrain, walking up to Alex. “It would have killed me if you hadn’t knocked me out of the way.”

“You would have done the same for me,” said Alex. He looked around at his companions. “It appears that we are all unhurt.”

“Yes, it does,” said Nellus, standing close to the fire.

“I don’t suppose any of us wants to spend the rest of the night so close to that thing,” Kat said, a look of disgust on her face as she pointed at the dead nagas.

“We will have to move camp,” said Thrang. “Even dead, this creature is unpleasant to be near.”

They went to work at once, taking down tents and packing their things. Alex removed his hiding spell from their horses as Thrang asked Thrain to put out the fire. Arconn suggested they move closer to the nagas’s cave and search it once the sun had come up.

“That would be best,” agreed Thrang. “I have no desire to be searching caves in the dark. Who knows what other creatures we might find.”

“I doubt there are many creatures that would share a cave with a nagas,” said Alex.

They followed the stream north for about a mile before setting up a new camp. The night was warm and clear, and since they didn’t plan on staying there long, they didn’t bother setting up their tents again. None of them felt tired after their fight with the nagas, so they spent the last hours of darkness sitting around the fire and talking.

“A masterful final blow,” Barnabus said to Alex. “You were quick in the attack.”

“A useful trait for the person who is the bait.” Kat laughed.

“I was almost too slow,” said Alex. “The nagas moved much faster than I thought it would.”

“But not fast enough.” Thrang laughed. “Though it was a close call for some of us. Young Thrain here was so busy thinking of attack, the creature almost had him. You should pay more attention to your enemy,” Thrang said to Thrain.

“In the heat of battle, it is easy to forget the danger,” Alex said, glancing at Thrain, who looked a little embarrassed.

“True enough,” Arconn added. “I have often seen warriors take terrible wounds simply because they were trying to attack and forgot their defense.”

“All that you say is true,” said Thrang, his voice softer. “And Thrain did draw first blood. That’s not bad for a first-time adventurer—not bad at all.”

The last few hours before sunrise passed quickly, and their talk dwindled to silence as the new day arrived. As the company ate breakfast, Alex noticed that Thrain still seemed a little shy of him. He wondered if the contest of power with Bane, and the fact that Alex had saved Thrain’s life, had made Thrain unsure of their relationship.

Alex remembered the wild, reckless feelings that had almost overcome him while fighting the nagas and facing off against Bane. It was something he had never felt before, not even when he was fighting goblins with his magic sword. He considered asking Whalen about it, but he knew Whalen would tell him to control his emotions. The trouble was, the feeling wasn’t really an emotion. It was a sense of power, greater power than he had ever experienced before, and a recklessness that came from knowing he could not be defeated. It was strange, and it scared him more than he liked to admit.

After breakfast, Arconn led them through the trees to a wide clearing full of wreckage. Broken wagons, carts, and bones were scattered over the ground. To one side of the clearing, a large cave opened into a small hillside, its dark opening looking like a patch of midnight that morning had forgotten to wipe away.

“Why would so many people bring carts and wagons here?” Nellus questioned.

“The nagas tricked them,” said Alex. “It must have made promises to these travelers to lure them close to its den.”

“Then why did it not do the same with us?” Kat questioned.

“Travelers are easier prey than adventurers are,” Arconn answered.

“Yes,” agreed Thrang, looking around the clearing. “Arconn, Alex, and I will enter the cave. The rest of you, search the wagons and carts.”