Berserker's Path

You keep what you kill. Halfdan has the gift of the berserker. In battle, his rage grants victory, and every injury suffered only makes him fight stronger. But he is no mindless murderer who delights in slaughter. He lives a calm life by the forest edge, protecting his hometown despite their apprehension towards him and all of his kind. For berserkers do not distinguish between friend and foe once the rage takes over, and unlike other gifts, their powers can only grow stronger when they kill. Driven by the spirit of a bear, such warriors have more than once gone on killing sprees, laying waste to the land to quench an insatiable thirst for power. Halfdan’s quiet existence is upended by a seemingly innocuous task and a long-awaited charge. The berserker must bring a message to the high priest of Odin, and he must assume responsibility for Sif, a child intended to be his apprentice. Neither goes according to plan, and soon, Halfdan finds himself on a journey across the nine realms, blessed and cursed by higher powers, all the while pondering a simple question: What do the gods want with him?