Blood on the Blade

by Griff Hosker

  I saw the envy on the faces of Siggi and Arne. I nodded dumbly and went to the mast. I would be a navigator. Was I ready? Arne and Siggi came to sit with me. Arne put his arm around my shoulder, “I envy you brother but I would not exchange places with you. Siggi and I will be your crew when we leave our home.”

  “Thank you, brother. I am not sure that I am ready.”

  Thoughtful Siggi had mulled our future over in his mind, “Erik, it seems to me that we are in a Norn’s web. None of this would have been the course our fathers chose. This was chosen for us. We thought to spend our days on Hrólfsey.” He swept an arm to the west, “Our future lies out there somewhere. We are not farmers. We are Vikings. Each of us has skills. Our fathers are two halves of a whole. There is a future out there but we do not yet know what it is.”

  We parted at the beach. Arne and I amused our baby brother while my father explained to my mother and Edmund what we intended. Neither had any attachment to Hrólfsey but the thought of a voyage of many days filled them with dread. “Can we take all of the animals?”

  My father shook his head. “We take the milk cow, the ram, the three most fertile ewes and as many lambs as we can manage. We take the fowl for we can eat the eggs on the voyage. The rest we slaughter and salt.” She nodded. “We take that which we need for a new life. We take tools and what we need to cook. We will hew timber in the new land to make beds and furniture.”

  “And when do we leave?” My mother was ever practical.

  “That I do not know. I think that we will have to leave by the start of Heyannir. The jarl will be anxious to show the King of Norway that he can rule these islands for him. We have friends who will come with us. Our drekar will be crowded.”

  We began to prepare the next morning. There were enough barrels for we often took them from our enemies when we raided. They needed to be cleansed. We had to prepare salt and so while Edmund cleaned out the barrels, Arne and I made salt pans on the beach to make the salt that we would need to salt the meat and the fish. When we had finished, we went to the drekar and the snekke to lift the decks and to prepare the hold for cargo. My father and Snorri came down to help us to remove some of the ballast. I knew that my father was worried that while we had spare spars and a mast, we did not have a spare sail.

  When we ate that night, the meal was tinged with sadness. We would be leaving the only home Arne and I had known. Each meal would be a time to remember the turf hall which was so familiar. Even our beds would be left behind and as I lay on mine, I wondered about the future. Would I live, one day, in the land of ice and fire?

  The next day the first of my father’s friends arrived with their chests and war gear. Butar Beer Belly and Sigismund were unmarried. They brought with them Harald of Dyrøy. Butar said, “We had no need to debate our future. I will not follow a king. We will follow you, Lars. Where do we go?”

  “The land south of the Land of the Wolf and north of Ceaster. We are preparing to gather what we will need.”

  Herald said, “Then I would hurry for I heard that the jarl and the new lord of Mann wish to punish you for your opposition.”

  My father had already considered that. “We cannot leave until we have a crew. You three are a start. We will begin to fill the hold. We have one barrel of ale brewed already and some fish are dried. We stack those in the hold first.”

  The next day more men arrived. This time there were women and children too. Galmr, Asbjorn and Finn had wives and children. Two had sons of seven and eight summers. Galmr’s was just four. They would have to be ship’s boys. Galmr had a daughter too and Finn the Scar had twins. The women and the girls went to my uncle’s hall. They would be safer there. Even as they were heading across the pasture to Snorri’s hall three figures approached. I shaded my eyes against the sun.

  “It is Leif, Olaf Olafsson and another I do not know.”

  My father stopped and we awaited them. Olaf spoke for them. “Lars, we would sail with you. My grandfather died and I had nothing left on the island. Leif would follow you as would Sven Svensson.” Sven’s father had been killed on the Mann raid. I could see that he would not be happy to remain on the island.

  “You are welcome. There is little room in my hall and I would have you sleep by the drekar.”

  “That is good. Others are coming, Lars. They share your view that this is bad for us. We need no king.”

  With so many men and women now available we were able to slaughter the animals and fatten up the ones we would be taking. Nothing would be wasted from the animals. Finn led the men to hunt more seals. The seals were the gold of the islands and there would be none in our new home. We needed their oil, bones and meat. Another handful of men arrived two days later. We now had enough men to crew the drekar. Gandálfr, Benni, and Ragnar all came from the jarl’s stad. As we ate a fish stew on the beach by the drekar they told us of the changes wrought by the King of Norway.

  “He taxes those who live by the port. The ones who object are ejected from their homes. We each had a small farm which gave us vegetables. We had little coin and we could not pay. It is not right. We would have fought but…”

  I looked at Gandálfr. He had a poorer sword than mine and his pot helmet was battered. My father nodded, “You need numbers to fight. That is how this King has gained such a large kingdom. He picks off individuals. We leave in ten days. By then we will have fattened up the animals and that which we take will be ready. We have many mouths to feed.”

  Now that we had more men my father had begun to allocate men to oars. Asbjorn was given the snekke. I would steer but Asbjorn would command. I was happier about that. We had the younger warriors as our crew: Arne, Siggi, Olaf, Leif, Ragnar, Harald and Gandálfr. We would also have the fowl and the sheep. The next days saw us all draw closer together as we continued our preparations. More men arrived. They came in ones and twos. I wondered if we had enough space for all of them.

  My father and Snorri were at the hall studying a chart which Olaf had brought. He had inherited all of his grandfather’s goods. He had a compass too but no hourglass. The rest of us were loading barrels into the hull of the drekar and snekke. It was a painstaking business. Badly stacked cargo could cause a ship to broach and sink. Einar Finnsson came racing down to us, “Father, Jarl Eystein has sent men. They are heading from the south. Our lord needs you armed.”

  We needed no urging. All our war gear was by the drekar and I grabbed my helmet, shield and sword. I had no time to don my jerkin. Finn said, “The jarl does not know we are here. Let us give him a surprise. Asbjorn and Butar, take half of the men and sweep around to the west. The rest come with me and we will go to the east.”

  I followed Asbjorn and we ran along the beach and then up the western path. I knew this land better than any save Arne. He had gone with Finn. I said, “There is a piece of dead ground ahead. We can use it to rise like wraiths behind the jarl’s men.”

  Asbjorn nodded, “This is your land and we will follow.”

  This was the first time I had run with a shield on my back and without a leather jerkin it chafed. I was just glad that I had my protector under my helmet and that the strap fitted well. I heard the raised voices before we were seen. I held up my hand and walked slowly up the slope from the dell.

  My father’s voice sounded controlled but I knew it was an illusion, “Tell the jarl we are leaving Hrólfsey, Agner Shield Bearer. There is no need to fight.”

  I heard Agner Shield Bearer. He was one of those who dutifully followed the jarl. He and my father did not get on. As I recalled he had a mail byrnie. He laughed, “It is not enough that you leave. You must be punished. The jarl wants the heads of you and your brother to show others that he is the one who rules here.”

  We neared the top. “And is that why he is not here with you? Does he fear to face me beard to beard?”

  As we rose up on the small ridge, I saw that Agner Shield Bearer had twenty men with him. These were the warriors who lived close to the jarl. They did not farm. They raided
and spent the rest of the time drinking away their profit. Agner Shield Bearer raised his sword. The all had their backs to us but I saw that my father and uncle had seen us. “Lars the Luckless, the jarl is too important to soil his hands on a farmer. Prepare to die!”

  Asbjorn shouted, “You first!” He ran down the slope and we followed.

  Agner was a stupid man. He must have known that the number of women who had emerged from the hall meant there were more than two men who would fight him. He knew that Arne, Siggi and myself lived here. He turned and stared in horror as we tumbled down the slope. Then Finn shouted, “Kill them!” and led the rest toward the jarl’s killers. Four of Agner’s men took to their heels. My father ran at Agner. He was going to kill him himself.

  Asbjorn and I had outstripped the others. I saw Petr Snorrison brace himself. He was facing me and had a shield and spear. He had seen thirty summers and knew how to fight but he had a beer belly. I ignored everyone else as I ran at him. I only had a small shield and Petr had a long spear. I saw him pull it back to strike at me. One advantage of my smaller shield was that I could move it easily. As the spear head came towards me, I flicked with my shield and then swung my sword. The shield deflected the head easily. My sword strike was badly timed but I hit the shield of Petr and knocked him to the ground. I fell too, winded. I rolled and rose.

  Petr’s spear had fallen to the ground. He took out his sword. He swung his sword in a long sweep. He would hit my little shield and this time I would have no protection. I brought my sword over. As his blade hit my shield my sword rang off his. I had a better sword than Petr. As he stepped back, I saw that it was no longer true. I took heart from that and swung at his head. He had a pot helmet and no protector underneath. His left arm was too slow to raise his heavy shield and he had to use his sword. The bent blade did not stop my strike and I caught his helmet. I punched with my small round shield and he reeled. He was on a down slope and I saw him lose his balance. I lunged with my sword as he fell and it went into his open mouth. It scraped off his teeth and then tore through the back of his head. He fell to the ground, dead.

  I turned and saw my father block Agner’s sword strike and then backhand his sword across the neck of the jarl’s man. The body fell to the ground. I saw that we had killed eight men and the rest had run. Sigismund had a wound to his leg and Gytha and Helga were tending to him.

  My father’s head whipped around. He saw me and smiled. On the ridge line Arne and Siggi raised their bloody swords. My father said, “They will be back. We leave tomorrow. Take what you need from the bodies.”

  Snorri asked, “Do we bury them?”

  “They do not deserve it. Leave them where they lie!”

  I went to Petr. As I expected he had no coins and his hammer was wooden. I took his sword and dagger. They were poor but we could melt them down. His shield and his spear were worth taking. The bodies were soon searched and all of value taken. Siggi and Arne were keeping watch from the top of the ridge. Arne shouted, “Men approach!” We all grabbed our weapons. Had the jarl sent more men? Then Arne shouted, “It is Faramir and his family.”

  Faramir farmed the land to the south west of us. My father and Snorri came towards me. My father said, “You did well. Petr had fought in many battles.”

  “He was old and he was slow.”

  Snorri laughed, “He was of an age with me. Am I old?”

  “I am sorry.”

  “I am just teasing.” I saw that Faramir had a cart. He was bringing all of his family. They led a pair of goats. “I think, brother, that we have more folk for our journey.”

  My father frowned. He feared we would be overcrowded. We might have to remove more ballast and as we had already begun to load beneath the deck that would be a problem. He shrugged, “We cannot turn any away. This is the work of the Norns.”

  Faramir had a wife, two grown sons, one of whom was married, and two unmarried daughters. When he reached my father, he gave a bow. “Lars we had nowhere else to go. We would come with you.”

  “You know not where I go.”

  “Wherever it is will be a better life than here. I have stood in a shield wall with you. That is more than can be said for the jarl. His men came yesterday and demanded taxes for living on my farm. We did not raid with the jarl. My sons and I have no coin. They took our thralls, cow and pigs as payment. They would have taken the goats but they ran off.”

  My father smiled, “Then come with us and welcome.” He pointed to the dead, “If you need weapons or aught from the dead then take them.”

  His son, Fámr, shook his head, “My brother, Folkmar, and I have helmet, sword and shield. We can fight for what is ours. Perhaps you will be a better jarl.”

  My father shook his head, “I am no jarl.”

  Faramir said, “By leading this new clan you are a jarl whether you will or not.”

  I could hear the Norns as they were spinning. Faramir was correct. We did have a clan. I was not sure how I viewed the prospect. We had lived alone and we were comfortable with ourselves. Now we would need to build a palisade, a hall and live close together.

  We shared the watch that night but I was relieved for I was needed in the hall. My father was there with the other senior men of our new, as yet, unnamed clan. The hall had been stripped of everything that would be carried. The women and the children were already wrapped in blankets, skins and furs as they enjoyed their last night on land for some time.

  “Erik, I need to ask you, are you still happy about sailing the snekke?” I saw that Olaf was in the hall but not around the table. He had more experience than I did. My father smiled, “No one wishes to take the helm from you but there will now be more people and you have a greater responsibility. If you are not sure then speak.”

  “I have sailed the snekke, ‘Jötnar’ speaks to me. I am content and I will have Asbjorn to command if we have to do battle.”

  “And that may be truer than you think, my son. You will have ten warriors on your snekke. All of the oars can be manned. You will have the goats too. My intention is to sail west and get as far from Orkneyjar as we can. I do not think that either the King of Norway or his new Lord of the Isles will let us leave peacefully. By heading into the western sea, we may lose any pursuers. Then we sail south between Dún Lethglaise and Ljoðhús. If we have to, we can then enter the narrow channels between the islands there.”

  Faramir had not been party to the earlier discussions, “And where do we land?”

  “There are two good rivers, the Loyne and the Ribble. We choose the one with the fewest people.” Faramir nodded. My father turned to me. “You know that we may well become separated on this journey?”

  “Aye.”

  “You have the compass but I will take your hourglass.”

  “That is at it should be. We will manage.” I sounded more confident than I actually was. Had Olaf been able to secure the hourglass of his grandfather then all might have been well but the jarl had it in his possession. The Norns!

  We spent some time studying. I had a piece of cloth I had taken from Petr’s body. I had intended to use it to clean my mail but as it was light coloured, I took a piece of charcoal and made a rough copy of my father’s chart. It was crude and had no distances upon it but it showed the north and that was all that I needed. I marked with a cross Dún Lethglaise and Ljoðhús as well as wriggly lines for the two rivers. Thankfully they looked closer together. I did not sleep in the hall that night. Instead I went over every piece of tackle on the snekke. The deck was in place and small barrels of ale and food were secured at the side. The two goats would be tethered by the prow.

  Arne and Siggi came to join me. “Brother, will you not sleep in the hall tonight?”

  I shook my head, “I need to become as one with ‘Jötnar’. She must be in my dreams and in my head. She must know my fears as well as my hopes. I did not ask for this, brother, but I know that it is my destiny. When I sail west tomorrow it will be the start of a journey which will take a lifetime.” />
  Chapter 9

  It took longer to load the drekar than my snekke. I let Asbjorn assign the oars. I hoped we would not need them. Siggi and Arne had the ones at the prow and they would also have to watch the goats. Olaf and Leif were the next pair. Harald and Gandálfr the next and finally Asbjorn and Sven Svensson. They were balanced and the snekke still felt light. I now had a chest which I shared with Arne and Siggi. My compass was with me at the steering board. We had four bows amongst the crew. I had used Petr’s shield along the side. It gave more protection than my small one. My shield was lodged next to the stern post. I could use it to lean against.

  My father and his brother were the last to board the drekar. They fired the two halls and then boarded ‘Njörðr’. We had already cast off and were waiting to hoist the sail. My father came to the steering board and looked over. “You will follow. May the Allfather be with you and if we become separated…”

  “Then we will wait for you at the Loyne.”

  He laughed, “You are confident!”

  “I am your son!”

  The drekar was slower to move than we were. I gave it four lengths before I said, “Raise the sail!”

  The lively snekke leapt forward. Asbjorn laughed, “I can see that you named this one in humour. She is no slow giant! We could overtake the drekar any time we choose.”

  “I think that is why my father has us as a follower. I do not mind.” He went to sit by the mast with the others. It gave the snekke a better balance. I said, “Olaf Olafsson, would you join me?”

  He came and smiled, “You have come far in the last couple of years. Not quite a full beard and yet you steer!”

  “I know that it is in your blood and I thank you for not asking for the helm.”

  He shrugged, “I would be a warrior. I do not mind steering but I would not be my grandfather.”