Any nervousness in Iseldis fled as soon as the time to act came. It was always in the waiting, and now that she could fight she felt a clear focus that not even the horrifying appearance of the draugr could shake. Her staff flared to life, extending to its full length and glowing white, filling the interior of the otherwise dark house with a soft light.

She interrupted the draugr lunging for Roland, deflecting its sword up and out of harm's way with one end of her staff before she brought the other end around for a swift strike to its gut. It stumbled back, and Iseldis pressed her advantage, aiming to drive it away and give herself more room to work. Her staff was difficult to use in confined spaces, and she couldn't afford a misstep here.

She pelted the draugr with a swift series of strikes, faster than it could hope to block, and when she saw the opening to make a heavier swing, she took it, spinning in a circle and landing a clean horizontal strike to the draugr's face. It was intended to knock a human opponent unconscious, and without thinking she applied the same strategy to the draugr.

Her staff took the draugr's jaw clean off, sending it and several sharp teeth flying across the room, but the creature did not seem to care, and counterattacked while Iseldis was still recovering from her swing. A shoulder bash caught her in the chest, driving her back a step, and though she managed to turn aside a thrust that would've impaled her, the draugr seized her by the throat, pushing her until her back collided with a wall. Her wind left her in a rush, and a brief moment of panic crept in. The draugr's hand was dry and scratchy against her neck, and a guttural growl bubbled up from its throat, malevolent sapphire eyes locked on her.

Their weapons were locked in a stalemate. Iseldis tried to pry the hand from her throat, tried to knee and kick the draugr away, but it was no use.